Fin or Feet

I live on a lake so my granddaughters have been spent a lot of summers as mermaids. The youngest was here Sunday and Monday this week and is the one who would likely sleep in the water, if allowed. For a while she was a dolphin and would follow a command and be rewarded with a chunk of watermelon. But, mostly, she was a mermaid. Her imagination was full of fantasy as she explained that sometimes she had fins and other times, like when doing a hand stand in the water, her tail would morph to appear that she had feet so that people wouldn't know she was truly a mermaid. It is so fun to watch her play, hour after hour, sometimes finding her feet and other times sporting her fins. 

All this fantasy brought me back to Chris's sermon on Sunday... fake FAITH. It is quite normal for an 8 year old child to pretend to be something they are not, but when we do it as adults, it isn't beneficial or attractive. And nobody sees it more than those who live under our roof. I assume that most of you who read this blog consider yourselves followers of Christ. Some days you follow Him more closely than others. Some days your faith is strong and your fear is small. Other days... not so much. 

During these perilous times of the COVID pandemic, where do YOU stand? It is the perfect time to exhibit your faith in God to your kids and teach them that bad experiences do not equal bad God. He is not asleep to what is happening on planet earth. He is fully aware and He is the CREATOR and is always creating good from what appears to be evil, in our eyes. 

I would like to challenge all who read this to allow God to do His work in your heart, strengthening it through the struggles and make your faith real. 

...Too much togetherness has caused relationships to be strained so make the faith you profess real by asking God to strengthen the bonds of your  marriage and morph those fins of fake faith into feet ready to go the extra mile as love demands.

...So much fear of the unknown has caused high anxiety which lowers our tolerance for just about everything and our patience ebbs away like a mermaid in the mist, never to be seen again. It doesn't have to be so. Call on the God who made you to reflect His love and let the tail of fake faith go and find the feet you need to stand up to the evil sea monster. Reclaim the loving kindness that marks you as a follower to your kids. 

...Perhaps your income has not been impacted, but people all around you are struggling to pay their rent or feed their family due to the pandemic. Are you using the strength of the mermaids tail to swim off into the sunset, or showing your kids what true compassion looks like and putting real feet to your faith, reaching out in love and making sacrifices in order to help others?

Don't be fake in your faith. Your kids will see that a mile away and, well, if it's good enough for you, it's good enough for them. If you want them to have a faith that is real and follow Jesus all the way to heaven, be real. Act out the faith you profess and when you mess up and fall short, humble yourself before them and confess that you have been less than God intended. Admit that you have been trying to do life on your own and that isn't how you want to live. It's really okay to tell them that we are all on a journey. We are discovering the power of God daily and learning that we have a choice to use His strength or our own. Sometimes we don't get it right. Wouldn't you rather your kids know that you messed up than end up failing because they have perceived your failures to be the right path for them?

Think About It

Experts estimate that we think 2,100 to 3,300 thoughts every hour. It's no wonder I can't remember anything! The things I need to remember get buried under all the senseless things that scroll through my mind. Many of them need to keep on running and not take up residence there.

I have worked with many people through the years that carried wounds from the thoughts they allow to live in their mind and some whose marriages are in jeopardy because those thoughts were carelessly spoken without taking the time to assess if they would wound or scar. Or perhaps the issue is listening. Offense is often taken when our partner doesn't know what we just finished saying or has to continually ask us to repeat what we said because they were distracted with 3,000 thoughts spinning around in their heads.

If an adult thinks that many thoughts in a day, how many do you suppose a child with a developing mind, who is observing the world around them with awe and wonder, might have? I can't even venture a guess! Perhaps that is the reason they fail to follow through on so many of the tasks assigned to them. 

With all these thoughts rolling around in our heads, how is one to determine which ones are worthy of seeing the light of day? What thoughts are worth speaking? Ed Haines, in his message Sunday shared this acronym...

T TRUE.      Is what you are thinking true? Is it a perception that you carry from childhood that needs to be surrendered? Is it a falsehood that Satan is using to sway you into unhealthy thoughts and actions? Does it align with God's thoughts and the truth that we find in scripture? Do your thoughts stand in opposition to who God says you are? If it does, write it down on a piece of paper so that you can rip it up and toss it in the trash. 

H HELPFUL. Can your thoughts help someone learn what they need to know? Can they strengthen and unify? Can they assist others in rising to their full potential? And, above all, can you share them in a helpful, not a judgmental manner? Are you willing to walk alongside and be a helper rather than a hater? Remember, even Jesus didn't heal every single sick person. Be discerning about who it is that God is calling you to help. Sometimes He may have that person assigned to another, so don't rush in without consulting Him first.

I INSPIRING.    Are your thoughts going to have the power to help anyone have a richer life? Are they helping you to see that you are who God says you are? Are they empowering? Encouraging? Enlightening? If not, toss them out with the rubbish. Think thoughts that will inspire and connect your heart to the heart of others. You won't impress many people with your knowledge, but you can inspire them with the wisdom God provides.

N NECESSARY.  Many of our 3,000 thoughts each hour may well be true, helpful and even inspiring to some, but they may be completely unnecessary. Every truth is not meant to be spoken. A three year old doesn't know not to tell the 400 pound person at the buffet that they are fat and shouldn't eat a third helping. True? Probably. Necessary? Nope! Often times people know that they have issues they need to deal with. It is better to pray for them to seek the Lord than to take His place and do the "helping" yourself. 

K KIND. We have all expressed ourselves in ways that have landed wrong. We know it, but it is too late to retract it. What would this world be like if we stopped to consider how our words might be received before speaking them? What if our primary objective was to be kind and consider the feelings of others before we speak a single word? That sounds like heaven! There would be less wounds to heal, less apologies to make and stronger, healthier relationships transforming our homes and our culture.

THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK.

...make the world a better place.

Beauty for the Journey

Giving and receiving grace is a beautiful thing. It strengthens marriages, builds relationships and makes the world a better place. However, it is an expensive commodity and often very rare. The cost is a forfeiture of our pride and a willingness to love a little bit deeper. Sometimes we feel like we don't have the resources to afford this extravagant grace, but there is a link where discounts can be found to make it affordable. 

Here is the link:  Thankfulness. You see, with every offering of gratitude, with every utterance of praise, with every expression of thanksgiving, we find that we receive tokens that are good for offering and receiving grace. I can't explain how this works, but I know that it does. You see, when we are truly thankful for all we have, for all who have loved us and have helped to grow us and even those who challenge us regularly, we find that we begin to let go of the pride that made grace seem so expensive. 

Here is my analogy. I don't like to spend money. I like to save it and enjoy the security of a savings account. I also don't like to have sore feet or back aches, but when I found a shoe that would take care of my feet and my back, it seemed like way too much to spend. For years I continued to suffer because I didn't want to take money from the bank to make the purchase that seemed like far too much to spend on shoes. It wasn't until I had to see a specialist and spend a boatload of money on inserts and therapy, that I decided to bite the bullet and buy good shoes. I had to give up what made me feel secure to acquire what made me feel my best. 

Perhaps you don't want to extend grace because your pride account is important to you. It makes you feel secure. Those deposits were hard earned. They came from a betrayal, a disappointment, a loss, an injustice, a fear of showing your needs or insecurities, a lot of personal investment. You may be guarding your pride bank like it is Fort Knox, but you will just have to trust me when I say that taking some pride out of your account and replacing it with gratitude will take away the pain that is just short of crippling. It will leave you prepared to extend the grace that will lighten your load and make your journey more beautiful.

"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances;

 for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

1 Thessalonians 5:!6-!8

Do You See This Woman?

 

 

 

In Need of Grace

"The message at my funeral is not my merit, but God's grace. Don't sing my praises, sing His." That was the instruction I received many times in the last year of Dad's life here on earth. One of the many songs he selected was written by Julia Johnston, probably around the beginning of the 20th century and it contains this message:

Marvelous, infinite, matchless grace, freely bestowed on all who believe.

You that are longing to see His face, Will you this moment His grace receive?

Grace! Grace! God's Grace. Grace that will pardon and cleanse within.

Grace! Grace! God's Grace. Grace that is greater than all our sin.

I can still hear his bass voice booming out those low notes as I played it for him. The irony for me was that he was such a good man that I never thought of him needing God's grace. He just seemed to be a natural at loving and giving and devotion to God and others. When I expressed that, he assured me that there are always inner struggles this side of heaven to keep us in need of God's mercy, grace and  forgiveness, we just don't always see our needs until the shadows fall.

The Daniel Boone National Forest in Kentucky is one of our favorite places. There are miles and miles of trails, over 100 natural arches, waterfalls and extraordinary views of God's creation. Once when Dana and I went for a long weekend, we were so anxious to get to the top of Natural Bridge, an arch carved out by a thousands of years of erosion, that we dropped our luggage in the lodge and took off to the top to watch the sunset. It was spectacular, as expected. As we headed back down the decent to the lodge, we realized our folly in our rush to the top. We hadn't brought a flashlight. It was no problem to trek through the forest in daylight; climb the inclines (that get exponentially steeper with each year that we age) or hug the high side of the trail to avoid the forty-plus foot drops on the cliff side of the trails. Neither of us gave a moments consideration to our need of light for the trip down after the sun set. We made it down, obviously, but only by the grace of God. 

In the same way, life may seem to be going great in our pursuit of a goal, but there will always be those times when darkness settles in and we are made aware of our constant need of God's grace. God is not surprised or dismayed by our need of Him. He created us to be dependent on Him. He knows the darkness that plagues us and is not ashamed of us. Hiding and wallowing in guilt is not beneficial to anyone. Reaching out and holding on to Him (like I held on to Dana's belt to find my way down the mountain) is what gets us to our destination.

Humble yourself and realize your need for a God of grace and mercy. Don't do life without it. You will be miserable and so will those around you. It was unfathomable love that transformed the Creator of the universe into a mortal so that He could bear our punishment and bestow His unending grace upon us. Why refuse that gift and drown in your sin and self-condemnation. Grab hold of His belt and let Him guide you down the mountain, away from the cliff and into the place of light.

Grace

Often we think of GRACE as something we receive, rather than give. Perhaps that explains the condition of our homes, our communities, our world. Truly, it is time to bring grace home.

Sometimes in our efforts to show mercy, grace and compassion to our spouse or kids, we administer the sort of treatment that, to us, feels like a warm, fluffy puppy, but to them it lands like a bare foot in that puppy's poo. To be grace-filled at home is to know the needs of your spouse so that you can bring what is needed and not assume they need what you might need. Since I don't know of anyone who is truly able to read minds, we are going to have to ask and listen. "What are you feeling right now?" "What is causing you this anxiety?" "Why do you think I am angry or disappointed with you?" "What do you need from me right now?" "I know what I intended, but what did you hear?" "I care, but I don't understand. Please help me to understand you better."

Assuming that you know what is happening inside your spouse's head will typically take you to a destination that wasn't in your sites. And that isn't the kind of surprise vacation you were looking for. If we don't ever take the time to ask and listen, perhaps we are being prideful and think that we have the answers or that their feelings are invalid. Pride kills, but humility helps us show the kind of grace that builds relationships. 

"God opposes the proud, but shows favor to the humble."  

James 4:6

How can you humbly show grace at home? The above verse is preceded with the question, "What causes fights and quarrels among you?" and answers the question with a universal truth: unmet desires. Our desires in marriage will not ever be met if we don't begin to ask questions, find our inner longings and express them to the one across the table from us. There is also a caution in this chapter not to get carried away by the advice of the world. In this day, it would be to post negative sentiments on social media or look elsewhere for needs to be met or simply walk away. None of those options contain the grace that we are called to extend. None of them show humility. Don't slander. Don't judge. Instead, "humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up."

God knows your heart and your motives. He can spot a fake all the way from heaven. Humility is required to extend grace to others and honor them above yourself. If you can't take the time to sit down and talk it through, how ever many times it takes, (and after nearly 44 years of marriage I can tell you that the need for this never ends, though it becomes less frequent) then you are missing out on a rich and blessed marriage (and after almost 44 years I can promise the blessings far outweigh the effort). You will never truly know the joy of marriage if you don't set your pride aside and extend the hand of humility and grace. 

Building A Better Tomorrow

As I write this, it is June 1, 2020. Many mayors and governors across the nation are calling for a Day of Lament. As a country we have much to grieve. Though it seems we have come so far from shackles and owning other humans, prejudice is still sickeningly strong. We have such a long way to go in showing love, honor and respect despite our differences. Not a single one of us has the right or authority to stand in judgement, disqualifying those who are unlike us from having the same freedom and rights that we have. It is an attitude of self-righteousness and pride that brings disgrace on any nation, prejudice to our minds and deep sorrow to the heart of God.

Sunday was Pentecost Sunday. It commemorates the day when the Spirit came to empower the Church to be mobilized to build God's kingdom on a foundation of love and grace and truth. God's people were given power to raise the dead and heal the sick and change the world. That power was not given to control others or to build an empire, but to build unity and resurrect love and grow compassion and humility.  The first century church had no room for prejudice and when they discovered it in their hearts, it had to be healed. We could certainly use some Holy Spirit power to rebuild our foundation and wipe out the prejudice that divides and destroys today.

If you know me, you won't be surprised to hear me say that I believe this rebuilding has to begin at home. If we are to raise humble children who are without prejudice, they must see it modeled. Many people have told me that they don't have room in their heart for prejudice, but they seem to have room for diminishing the value of their spouse's opinion or ideas. Every time you place your desires ahead of theirs, you are showing prejudice by indicating you are somehow more worthy or deserving to have things your way. If we show prejudice of any variety (making ourselves more important than others) we are teaching our kids that prejudice is okay. And they won't miss it. Kids are great observers. The only anecdote is to practice honoring others above yourself right before their eyes. Love selflessly. Give freely.  Listen as though their thoughts matter, because they do. Home-grown humility is a sure way to reverse prejudice. If we don't live it at home, what we demonstrate outside the home is counterfeit. 

Spend some time with your family talking about how to show value to others. Practice with siblings. Tell them when you have been shown value and love and how it makes you feel. Let them see that, as a family, you are building a better tomorrow by learning to love and honor each other above yourselves. That is a foundation that is secure. One way or the other, you are building their tomorrow. What will you build?

Brand New

"I am making everything new."

One year for my birthday I asked Dana to spend a Saturday with me "junk" shopping. I love to find old things and give them new purpose. But.... they must serve a purpose other than to collect dust. When there is a purpose for something old, it's like it has been given new life. A galvanized pail becomes a planter, an old pitcher hides my stash of chocolate chips, a cranberry glass cookie/candy jar stores the coffee. It doesn't become new, but it is given new purpose, which makes it like new. 

I believe that this desire that I have carries on into my calling, my vocation, my ministry. I love watching old scars begin to heal as bitterness and anger are washed away, leaving a fresh sheen of forgiveness; old arguments get recycled into new perspectives; marriages take on new life and passion returns. All of this because the One who made us never loses sight of the reason He did so. Each one of us has a purpose and sometimes we get on the wrong path and it takes us longer to get there, but the One who made all things good is in the business of making all things new again, 

It seems, during the quarantine and social isolation, many have taken to clearing out the clutter and making the house look newer and fresher and more efficiently run. Perhaps you might take a look inside at some attitudes and hurts that need to be eliminated. Your heart will be made fresh again, as relationships heal.Your life will be more meaningful as old habits are recycled into new patterns. A word of caution: Don't try this alone. There is plenty of your own "elbow grease" to invest but having a Godly mentor, life coach, or counselor on the other end of the saw sure does make it easier to cut through the issues. 

Most importantly, you need to know that in this transformation, the real and lasting change only lasts a moment at a time and requires that we hold tightly to the hand of the Great Repurposer. He is the only one that can truly make your marriage new; your relationships new; your habits new. He is the One who knows exactly why you are here, so why not give Him a chance to show you and direct your steps. 

The Obstacles In Our Path

Let me tell you a little something about obstacles. They slow you down. They get in the way of accomplishing what needs to be done. They flood over you some days until you can't catch your breath.  We may not have put them there, but perhaps we didn't pay attention to the sign warning us about them. We failed to follow the DETOUR designed to assist us. We may absolutely hate those obstacles, but we've become oblivious to the way they impede our progress. Sure, they slow us down, but eventually the pace seems acceptable. 

I have done a good bit of counseling in my years in ministry and have observed that marriages can get bogged down and eventually dissolve due to the obstacles that have become commonplace and are not addressed. So many times the DETOUR sign is ignored and they just keep moving toward the danger. Other times there is no detour, but there are so many pot holes that marriage can become like Indiana roads in the spring. We learn to maneuver around them, hoping someone fills them before we wreck a tire. Or worse. And then, one very dark night, we miss seeing it in time and ....

Whether you are responsible for the obstacle(s) to your success because of actions, attitudes, behaviors, habits, or an unwillingness to see things from a different perspective OR you are not responsible for them and circumstances beyond your control invited these obstacles onto your path, you have to decide if you are going to use them to grow or let them slow your development. If you choose the latter, you won't arrive at the destination you hoped for. In this manner, you have a responsibility for these obstacles even if you have nothing to do with their appearance. You can choose to continually allow them to trip you up or you can use them as stepping stones to get you to the other side.

Ignoring the obstacles in your relationships that keep it from honoring God will not end well. Though it will not likely be easy to address them, if you don't expand your mind to see from a different perspective, and begin to shift the obstacles out of your way, they will result in sinful attitudes and behaviors. Those behaviors will keep you from winning the race set out for you by the One that made you for that particular race. The man who wrote to the Hebrew Christ followers in the first century says it something like this...

Let us get rid of obstacles that get in our way 

and the sin that holds on to us so tightly, 

and let us run with determination

 the race that lies before us.

Hebrews 12:1

Maybe it isn't a marriage relationship that is filled with obstacles. Perhaps it is something else that is holding on so tightly to you that you have lost your determination and you are losing the race. Whatever it is, find the help that you need to get to the finish line. Be the winner you were made to be. Whether that is as an employer or employee; a husband or a wife; a student or a teacher; a mom or a dad - address the obstacles, do the next right thing, let go of sinful attitudes and actions and be determined to give it all you've got to receive the trophy.

Friends

Are you tired of isolation? Are your kids missing their friends to the point of losing their minds? Do you crave sitting down to dinner at a restaurant with your friends? I think I know the answer for most of you. Isolation is difficult, otherwise it wouldn't be used as punishment! As important as time alone is, friendships are a necessary part of life. We were not intended to do life alone. Friendships are essential.

Dana and I have been watching a reality show that seeks to recapture the spirit, the courage, the trials and the victories of the settlers of 1870 called Pioneer Quest. Two couples are given a plot of land, era appropriate tools and supplies to start their homestead in Canada much like couples would have 150 years ago. On the episode we watched last night, one of the foursome was struggling to be grateful for the help of her neighbor. She felt like she was somehow breaking the pioneer code  by accepting assistance. She wanted to experience all the feelings of a pioneer woman, including the loneliness and isolation they certainly endured when settling in a barren land in 1870. What she needed to remember is that our spirit needs the connection of others in order to grow and fully develop into who we were made to become. We were made for connection.
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Friends truly are one of the best gifts we can have, and finding the ones that will be with us through the valleys and on the mountaintops is a wonderful thing. Having that person be your spouse is priceless. If that isn't your situation, make it so! Decide to be that friend to your lifelong companion. Be there for them in the good times and the bad. Know their heart and their hurts and the motivations behind those actions that sometimes get under your skin. Become their most valuable natural resource and make growing old together a beautiful thing.

How blessed we are to have friends at home and outside of our homes. Hold on to them tightly and thank God for those people who cheer you on and who have the courage to confront you when you take steps in the wrong direction. Tell them they are valued and learn to be that kind of friend. If the message on the painting is the right one, feel free to print it and give it to that friend that has been with you on your journey. Let them know their value in your life.

I don't have a mailing address for God, who is with all of us on our journey, walking before us to guide our way in the dark times, behind us to push us to be our best, and beside us to laugh and cry and listen....so give it to the one who He has given you that has skin on. That is slightly imperfect and maybe somewhat annoying at times. And never forget what a gift this friend is.

Created for Dependence

What would happen if you stood a 2 month old infant on her feet and said to her, "You've got this!"? She will crash to the ground because she is unprepared to walk. Her body has not developed and her mind doesn't even understand your command to walk. She was never intended to walk as a 2 month old baby. And that is okay. Her parents don't love her less for crashing. They know she is totally dependent on others to help her get from place to place. Clearly, she can't handle this alone.

By the same token, you were never intended to manage your life on this planet alone. You were made for paradise and communion and harmony with and dependence upon your Creator. There will always be voices that tell us otherwise; that we don't need God; we don't need a crutch; we don't need the church; we don't need the Bible; we don't need prayer; we don't need to love everyone. "You've got this!" they cry and every single time we try to go it alone and do our own thing, there is a crash. We saw that happen with Adam and Eve and all throughout history and it is still happening today.

No matter how strong or smart or spiritual you get; no matter how disciplined you are; no matter how much you want to be a godly example... you just cannot do that on your own strength. You can't handle that alone. You need a Guide, a Master, a Savior, a Shepherd that you can lean on and learn from every single day. God isn't disappointed in you for that because He made you to need Him. It's right there in the Divine schematic. He made us and was pleased with the design. But without His power source, we are going to crash. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but it will happen eventually because we were created to run on His strength and wisdom, not our own.

Knowing this to be a truth of humankind, perhaps the greatest gift you can give your kids is to let them see you leaning into God's strength, admitting your weakness and your need for Him. Sure, you are their Super Hero... at least for the first half of childhood... and that feels pretty good. But, if they are to see that they were designed to depend on God, they have to see that modeled and know that all that makes you a hero comes from leaning on Jesus.

A Fresh Focus

 Have you ever noticed that when you are looking intently at something, people tend to stop and look, even though they don’t know what they are looking at? Yesterday there was a large bird perched on a high branch near our house and I had my binoculars out trying to decide if it was an eagle or osprey. Several passersby noted my focus and looked in the same direction. After looking at it for so long and trying to focus, my eyes got worn out and began to glaze over. I had to stop and focus on something else so they could rest.

Perhaps the COVID 19 pandemic has your focus. You can't quite understand or determine what is happening from one day to the next and your gaze into an unknown future has you and your family a little on edge. The kids might be trying to see what you are looking at and since you can’t even identify it, everyone becomes anxious. All the questions of what is to come of the economy, the health of our loved ones and more, can be a lot. Maybe it's time to stop staring at it and look at something we know.

In the first century, Paul was dealing with people who often stared at what they didn’t understand and became confused about how they were to follow the way of Jesus. There was a long heritage of wandering and a longer list of rules that identified them. They lived in a time of heinous religious persecution, fear and mandatory isolation for their protection. Like us, they just didn’t know what to do with all that was happening around them and it had their complete focus until their eyes began to glaze over. In 2 Corinthians 3 Paul states that the fog lifts when we turn to the Lord, receive His freedom from all the fear and "are transformed into His likeness."  That is why we don't lose heart (2 Corinthians 4).  Our focus has to move to the Spirit of God who is using everything we encounter to transform us into His likeness.

Wow! Can you imagine if we all just looked to God long enough for others to begin looking there, too? Soon everyone around us would be trying to see Him! Our families and friends and coworkers would feel less fear and isolation and instead experience the joy of transformation that God desires for us. Everything would change as the Spirit teaches us that there is purpose in the pain and, "Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” 

Eternal glory sounds like looking at something farther away than the osprey, which will wear us out, but eternal glory isn’t just pearly gates and death isn’t the only way out of this mess. Eternity is yesterday, today and tomorrow and is given so we can live, love, grow, cry, laugh and enjoy one another while experiencing God. In this cycle of eternity, change is inevitable and an intentional part of God’s plan. High tide and low. Sunrise and sunset. Young to old. Change is really normal and not to be feared. It becomes light and momentary when we remember that it is here to transform us into His likeness and is part of God’s plan.

How can you see COVID 19 as light and momentary? Change what you are looking at. We fix our eyes NOT on what is seen, (sickness, quarantine, social isolation, unemployment, loneliness, fear, discouragement – or a large unidentified raptor, because all of that will wear us out), but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." (2 Corinthians 4:17). The unseen things are the constant presence of God’s Spirit reshaping us; His love transforming our hearts and attitudes; His wisdom helping us discern next steps. His strength empowering us to navigate all of this. Transformation will come when we focus on Him.

So, where will you focus? The pandemic or the Potter? The disease or the Divine? The finances or the Friend? The economy or Eternal glory? Your loneliness or your LORD? One will make your eyes glaze over and the other will help you see God. And remember, others will be looking to see what captures your gaze. 

...Inwardly we are being renewed, day by day.

For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory 

that far outweighs them all.

So we fix our eyes, not on what is seen but on what is unseen. 

For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 

1 Corinthians 4:16-17