one need

“Not relief from pain,
not relief from the weariness that follows,
not anything of that sort at all,
is my chief need.
Thou, O Lord my God, art my need.
Thy courage, Thy patience, Thy fortitude.
And very much I need a quickened gratitude
for the countless helps given every day.”
- Amy Carmichael

essentials

Everybody should have an elephant tea-pot.
And to go with it,
fresh flowers
that are positioned in close proximity to the nose,
so they can do what they do best,
which is to smell good.
Ah, what a sweet aroma,
is filling the air.
Thanks mum for visiting,
and for your thoughtfulness.

double take

Two of the most delightful things in life are letters and fresh fruit.

P.S. This set-up was a complete accident. I :)ed when I noticed it.

friends. really?

The moon is glowing
The moon is showing
Its silver beams are bright
The light it’s casting
Is sure long-lasting
White light throughout the night

Did you know that the moon appeared bigger and brighter this past weekend, than it will for the rest of the year? The first full moon of the year is known as: Wolf Moon. Its name is hundreds of years old, and is derived from the hungry wolf packs that used to howl at the moon near Native American villages. Interesting, huh? And the reason why it appears fuller and wider right now is because in each orbit, the moon reaches this closest point to us, called perigee. Fascinating, eh? But really, you don’t need to know any of that to enjoy it. And enjoy it, I have. Last night, I enjoyed it with a friend over a walk. And tonight, I enjoyed it from a car window, while cruising with some friends on the freeways of California. And I wondered, like a child, about that age-old question, why it seems to follow me home. Anyways, it was dominating the sky, and demanding my attention. I couldn’t stop looking at it.

Creation gets me thinking about the Creator (as God intended it to). And I was struck with this thought – I am friends with the Maker of the moon. I, little-old-undeserving-me, enjoy fellowship with the One Who is currently fueling and suspending that ball of light, in the dark night sky. I am friends with Him, only because of Jesus, the Son of God, Who has reconciled me to God.

Nothing(!) is more awe-some than that!

fruit

The sun finally decided to come out and say hello today, and I have to say, it was nice to see him. Even now, I am enjoying his presence through my open window. Everything around me is all pretty and golden, and my back is being warmed nicely.

On my way to class today, I ate a delicious apple, which hasn't happened in a while. Lately, I've been disappointed with the kind that appear good, only to discover a soggy inside; but this one today did not disappoint. It was red, as red could be, and juicy as ever. You know what I'm talking about. The kind that you're convinced came straight out of the movie, Snow White. The kind that probably populated the Garden of Eden, before the fall. That kind. And so you bite and bite and bite, until there is nothing left but the core. yum. Speaking of apples, that makes for a smooth transition into what I actually wanted to write about today, which is the fruit of the Spirit. Imagine that.

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,gentleness and self-control. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

Galatians 5:22-26

I am silly and arrogant enough to try and produce this fruit by myself sometimes, even though it is blatantly the work of the Spirit. Hence the phrase... the fruit of the Spirit. Couldn't be any clearer, huh? Still though, I try to love people, and be joyful, and live peacefully, and be kind, and show goodness, and remain faithful, and be gentle, and practice self-control in my own strength. These attempts are pathetic though, and result in - defeat, disappointment, and guilt, (and usually in that order). In other words, I fail miserably when I try to do these things on my own. My tree is bare and fruitless. I look like winter.

But that is not how God intended it. No, rather He, in His grace, gave me His Spirit when He saved me. And it is His Spirit at work in me that produces the fruit. It is nothing in me or about me that can do it. It is the Spirit, that raised Jesus from the dead, residing within me, that can do it. I am so glad God has shown this to me lately. I can breathe a hUGE sigh of relief. To rely on the power of God, and to keep in step with the Spirit, that is what I am called to... and then, and only then, I can watch the fruit grow and multiply into beautiful orchards. It looks like summer, and God gets all the glory.

P.S. That is why verse twenty-six tells not to be conceited or envious of one-another. I used to think that that verse was sort-of awkwardly tagged onto the end of this chapter. I mean... really? c'mon! How is that relevant to the fruit of the Spirit. Well, come to see, it is totally relevant. The reason we can avoid conceit and envy is precisely because it is the fruit of the Spirit. How can we be proud when we realize that we have nothing to do with the fruit, because it is the Spirit of God who produces it? And how can we be jealous of another, when it is the Spirit working in another's life to make them more like Christ? Conclusion: we should be humble (and not think of ourselves more highly than we ought), and excited (giving thanks to God for another's faith).

I pretend to see little patches of Ireland. It's not exactly 40 shades of green. But, I'll take what I can get.









It's a nice thing
to go a walk in the rain,
without an umbrella,
and just get plain-old wet.
You should try it sometime.





(view from my dorm room window) Now you know why my blinds are always up.

dear sky - you are so interesting

These past few days, a storm has been passing through California. This means that I walk through a maze of colourful umbrellas in the hallway to get to my room. It means that my sock drawer is almost empty, which means that my laundry bin is quite full. It means that the raindrops drumming on my window have been my music, and the sky, my entertainment.

I have been doing a lot of looking out the window lately, because of the storm.
The clouds are shifting
The clouds are sifting
The sky through their grey shapes
Their shadows dancing
Their patterns prancing
Until some light escapes

And then I thought today of the latter half of James 1:17 - "with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning." I am glad that God is not like the sky that I have been watching. Rather, He is unchanging, and dependable, and consistent, and steadfast. That fact affords me great sanity and peace.