God provides...

"The Lord spoke to Moses and said, 'I have heard the grumbling of the children of Israel. Tell them: In the evening twilight you shall eat quail, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread, so that you may know that I, the Lord, am your God.'"
Exodus 16:11-12

As I was listening to this reading on Pray-As-You-Go this morning, I watched the new squirrels in the new squirrel nest in my tree. The nest is really big and when I think of all the stuff the squirrels had to schelp up the tree in their little mouths, I marveled. I also saw a parallel between God providing for the Israelites in the desert and God providing for the squirrels in Idaho, America. God had provided all the building materials that went into this nest, as well as the instinct and wherewithal of the squirrels to get the job done. I have a feeling that God cares as deeply for the squirrels in my tree as anything God has created. God loves what God creates; it's as simple as that. Going back to yesterday's post on lamenting, the Israelites were major lamenters as they wandered around the desert. They lamented, perhaps rightly so, about everything. They even lamented, wistfully thinking about the lives they left behind in slavery in Egypt! But how did God respond to their laments? God heard them and fulfilled their needs, providing food for them. Later, they even lamented about "this wretched food," but that's a lament for another day. Today, another toasty one in Boise, let's watch for all the signs of God caring for God's own creation...including us, God's beloved. Love, heidi

Lamenting...

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; God's mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."
Lamentations 3:22-23

I was blessed to spend this past weekend up in the Sawtooth mountains at a women's retreat. It was a lovely combination of learning, quiet time, prayer, and recalling the times in our lives when we have lamented. How do we deal with the times of lament we all face? Life can be so difficult and it's inevitable that we will struggle with the storms of life. One thing I learned is that we can feel free to cry out to God, honestly and heartily. That's relationship, and God wants to be in relationship with us. It's true that God's love and mercy are always waiting for us. I also believe that when we're hurting, God hurts with us. God, certainly, hasn't caused the pain and sorrow in our lives, but God suffers with us. Read Matthew's account of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46) and see that Jesus lamented too. There's no way we can escape lament-worthy events in our lives, but there is hope in the steadfast love of God. As long as we cling to that, there is a new dawn on the horizon. Today, let's pray especially for those who are experiencing lamentful times in their lives. Can we be a comforting presence for them? Can we lift them up to God? I am again reminded of my lady on the bus last week, who got such disturbing news while en route somewhere. Prayers for all who are struggling this day. Love, heidi