Move furniture from in front of the picture window of my soul so light can come in and the eye can see out! “I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.” John 4:35
Gratitude is the lens through which I see the harvest and not a bucket list of when I will see the world.
thedailylily.com 
“Gratitude is the lens through which I see the harvest and not a bucket list of when I will see the world.”
Gratitude: “gratitude |ˈgratəˌt(y)oōd|
noun
the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness : she expressed her gratitude to the committee for their support.”
If “gratitude is the lens” all Christians were looking through to see the harvest and Christians acted upon what they saw, would that mean churches would overflow, social services would not be needed, abortion clinics would close, etc . Or do I have this all wrong?
The picture reminds me that our head could be earnestly praying in the harvest but in reality by the turn of her body she may have her head within the wardrobe. On moving day at my place the heaviest piece of furniture was the wardrobe. I wonder what our wardrobe contains that has weighed us down and no forward move in the physical or the spirit can be made. Was the weight due to a life style we thought was rich by the world’s standards? Was it a look we wished to achieve through clothing, make-up, make-overs? Was it a make-over for our homes and added stuff to keep us up with those around us? Did our heads jump with ideas for a trip, our children, or additional stuff? We long forgot what the cost would be later on. We didn’t realize it would be much more than holes in our pockets. The space for our heart to thrive was given over to stuff that never caused our lives to jump in rhythm with the Lord. We stacked the items within the wardrobe neatly, making it heavier and heavier and the dollars lighter and lighter as updates created further updates. As the body (our house) grew old the dollars could not seem to overcome the need of costly updates. We thought we were sold out to God but the wardrobe was so heavy that man could not possibly be able to push that heavy thing of the mind aside. Our heart grew lukewarm and we could only think of someway to return to youth by using mind ultering medicines/addictions that would draw us farther away from God’s eye of LOVE. Only lightening of the wardrobe through the help of counseling and God, our Lord Jesus Christ could cause us to throw the old stuff out. The years have passed and we know not where they have gone. God says I still love you with a never ending love. Walk out of your darkness into my light, do not be encumbered again. See! My harvest is ripe, repent and walk in My light. My eye is still on you my child, it has been in this wall you built all along waiting for you to allow me to come within you. Go out and work while it is daylight before their is no more time for working. Enjoy the JOY of hearing MY throbbing heart as you draw closer to me, seek ME with all your mind to help my people and not the wardrobes of SELF. Open your mouth with clarity the testimony I have placed in your life and see I’m doing a work in you and through you to help others.
Rena,
I was just commenting on the “All About Me” blog, as you were writing here. It’s all about “SELF”, our own selfish selves. It makes me happy to see that you are able to see yourself, as I have been able to see myself. (see my comment on the blog…”All About Me”)
I sure do wish I could get out my tole painting brush and paint a different picture. I pray and hope that the young people coming forth with decide to make a different choice. Maybe they will be the future John Wesley’s who have so much confidence in their God that they don’t give up and will see the harvest come in a mighty way for the Lord or will they be writing the same regrets and missed opportunities.
The preacher in Ecclesiastes writes, “He has made everything beautiful in its time”. And in another verse…”To every thing there is a season.” So while it is still our season…for we are still on this earth…let us not waste another moment in retrospection….’shoulda, woulda, coulda…because we still “coulda” as long as we have breath within us. We’re still beautiful in His eyes; still have some of our “season” left. [and hopefully, some of our seasoning ]. Let’s not waste them any longer.. “He has shown us, o women, what is good;. ‘ to be holy, to love mercy and refrain from evil…” Starting on one another, fellow Christians, would be a good opening
Wise man say; ‘There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:” My wise brother always tells me, he loves to hear another’s story…it puts his in proper perspective.
Tammy H. asked above; If “gratitude is the lens” all Christians were looking through to see the harvest and Christians acted upon what they saw, would that mean churches would overflow, social services would not be needed, abortion clinics would close, etc . Or do I have this all wrong?
Guess I might need cataract surgery! (a medical condition in which the lens of the eye becomes progressively opaque, resulting in blurred vision.) Hum, Miss Tammy, I’m seeing pretty poorly these days when I put my name by your acts of deeds.
Debi, love the way your art portrays story. It seems Rena tells her story how she finds her head, shows her skill, and steadies the eye.
Tammy’s story views with the eye as the creator and caretaker of the sparrow. She steadies the spot and stitches the niche. It’s hard to leave Tammy’s story without finding your niche in the body, like it or not!
As my artist friend, Dawn says, art unites. Reaching and watching our blogs of paint art and word art leaves me to see we could be a Broadway Score!
Gratitude in this blog is looking for growth. How do I see ways to grow gratitude? Maybe gratitude is like a brand new car. Needs a key, yes, one exact key in the hands of a licensed driver to give it a go. .??? What now???
“Gratitude in this blog is looking for growth. How do I see ways to grow gratitude?” Psalm 107:1 says: “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever.” Psalm 136: 1 says: “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever.” Perhaps, one way to start with “growing our gratitude”…….is to give thanks to our Creator? Romans 1: 21 says: “Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship Him as God or EVEN GIVE HIM THANKS. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became DARK and CONFUSED.”
Read with me the footnotes from my Bible for verses 21-32, in Romans 1……sure got my attention! (YIKES!)
“How could intelligent people turn to idolatry? Idolatry begins when people reject what they know about God. Instead of looking to him as the creator and sustainer of life, they see themselves as the center of the universe. They soon invent ‘gods’ that are convenient projections of their own selfish ideas. These gods may be wooden figures, or they may also be goals or things we pursue, such as money, power, or possessions. They may even be misrepresentations of God himself..making God in our image, instead of the reverse. The common denominator is this: idolaters worship the things God made rather than God himself. Is there anything you feel you can’t live without? Is there any priority greater than God? Do you have a dream you would sacrifice everything to realize? Does God take first place in your life? Do you worship God or idols of your own making? Paul clearly portrays the inevitable downward spiral into sin. First, people reject God, next, they make up their own ideas of what a god should be and do; then they fall into every kind of wickedness: greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. Finally, they grow to hate God and encourage others to do so. God does not cause this steady progression toward evil. Rather, when people reject Him, He allows them to live as they CHOOSE. God gives them over to or permits them to experience the natural consequences of their sin. Once caught in the downward spiral, no one can pull himself or herself out. Sinners must trust Christ alone to deliver them from destruction.”
I’m wondering after reading this, if the “All About Me” blog connects?
After reading your comment I wondered if we are inticed by the world’s colorful idols by the beauty of the
kaleidoscope (kəˈlaɪdəˌskəʊp) of colors. We are so mesmerized by it that we forget to look at the TRUE LIGHT
of Jesus Christ. It seems hard to truely focus, but those who are called by His name will with the help of Jesus but the drawing of the kaleidoscope down and FOCUS on the Master, Redeemer – Jesus!
I looked the word up and the definition is as follows:
— n
1. an optical toy for producing symmetrical patterns by multiple reflections in inclined mirrors enclosed in a tube. Loose pieces of coloured glass, paper, etc, are placed between transparent plates at the far end of the tube, which is rotated to change the pattern
2. any complex pattern of frequently changing shapes and colours
3. a complicated set of circumstances
[C19: from Greek kalos beautiful + eidos form + -scope ]
Tammy thank you for sharing – when you mentioned gratitude and thanks to God Almighty the following song which we sing every week in our Bible Study came to mind – How precious are the WORDS –
Worthy of worship, worthy of praise,
Worthy of honour and glory;
Worthy of all the glad songs we sing,
Worthy of all the offerings we bring.
You are worthy, Father, Creator.
You are worthy, Saviour, Sustainer.
You are worthy, worthy and wonderful;
Worthy of worship and praise.
Worthy of rev’rence, worthy of fear,
Worthy of love and devotion;
Worthy of bowing and bending of knees,
Worthy of all this and added to these.
You are worthy, Father, Creator.
You are worthy, Saviour, Sustainer.
You are worthy, worthy and wonderful;
Worthy of worship and praise.
Almighty Father, Master and Lord,
King of all kings and Redeemer,
Wonderful Counsellor, Comforter, Friend,
Saviour and Source of our life without end.
You are worthy, Father, Creator.
You are worthy, Saviour, Sustainer.
You are worthy, worthy and wonderful;
Worthy of worship and praise.
Wheeeee, those footnotes leave me rocking without a note. And, reading on to next comment I’m afraid colors can divert my attention all to often. On the song would love to hear the tune.
Here is a choir on U-Tube which is singing Worthy of Worship, Worthy of Praise:
Beautiful….
“Gratitude is the lens through which I see the harvest and not a bucket list of when I will see the world.”
“How do I see ways to grow gratitude? Maybe gratitude is like a brand new car. Needs a key, yes, one exact key in the hands of a licensed driver to give it a go. .??? What now???”
Sara, your two comments above say to me that gratitude is not a feeling or a mental excersise but an action. It can’t happen by holding a key in my hand and wishing. I have to put the key in the ignition and make a connection, start the car, put it in gear and go to the destination to meet the goal for the reason I went. I can’t just turn on the ignition and sit and let the car idle. To show gratitude to someone is to do something to show appreciation. To give gratitude to God is to do find His way to do something about harvesting the Harvest.
Debi, sounds like we have a destination….