A Goldilocks Life

Freedom in Jesus

Titus 3:4-7 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

It was at my 30^th birthday party that I learned that there was a God who loved me, and I was forever changed. A group of my work friends and I were gathered in a fine restaurant not far from home, and over dinner the topic turned to religion. One friend asked if I was an agnostic, and I replied, “No, I am an atheist.” Suddenly all ten of them stopped talking, and that helped change the subject. What a relief. The last thing I wanted to talk about was religion.

Later, a few of us decided to stay for a few more drinks. The lights suddenly became very bright for me in that dark bar, and I felt a Presence I never had before. God is real, I thought. At that moment, I realized He loved me, and I wept uncontrollably for some time. I left with no explanation.

When I arrived home, I slurred to my husband, “I’ve had a religious experience, and I’m going to bed.” He had only come over to babysit our little daughter while I went to my party, and he left in a hurry. He had moved out a few weeks earlier. Those were troubled times in our marriage.

When a professed atheist believes that God exists, it’s a mountain-moving experience. The next day at our lunch break, I shared what happened the night before with Sally (not her real name), a fellow administrative assistant who had been part of the celebration. She had been in the bar when I started to cry. At lunch that day, Sally encouraged me to call my brother, Jim, whom she knew was a follower of Jesus.

Long story short (you can read the rest in my soon-to-be released memoir, “A Goldilocks Life”) I started attending church with Jim, and there I began to understand what the Bible says in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” I trusted in Jesus Christ after reading in the Bible, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life…” John 3:36.

My life changed drastically. I quit the rock band and partying. I prayed for the first time in my life, and my husband moved back home. I grew in my faith and knowledge of Jesus Christ with my brother’s encouragement and solid teaching at our church.

However, as days turned into weeks and weeks into years, I became proud of my Christian way of life. It was subtle at first, but I began to think I had to be good enough and keep every rule I heard in church. After a cross-country move to Arizona, the pastor at my new church taught a rule-following approach to pleasing God. As an immature follower of Jesus, I didn’t know any of these distinctions and just followed whatever the pastor told us. Sally, the friend who encouraged me to call my brother, unfriended me when I visited back home and told her how to rightly live for God—do, do, do. —don’t, don’t, don’t.

The Lord led us as a family to Colorado, and at my new church the pastor faithfully taught from the Bible about God’s grace and truth. I realized the freedom Jesus Christ had given me. Too much truth without grace equals harshness, and too much grace without truth becomes an excuse to sin. It was like a breath of fresh air to step away from the rule-keeping way of living the Christian life.

I pray you won’t get caught up in always checking boxes and trying to please God by doing, like I did. Good works are an outflow of the inward life of Christ as we are led by the Holy Spirit. Please avoid the trap of works-based religion and instead follow Jesus by walking in His ways day by day. The result—joy unspeakable and peace trusting what the Bible says in Titus 3, verses 4-7 (above). Like the evangelist Jonathan Edwards said. “You contribute nothing to your salvation except the sin that made it possible.”

That’s My Dad

Tonight, we will celebrate Father’s Day. It worked out for everyone to meet up this evening instead of Sunday, and that was fine with Steve. That’s my husband—easy-going but never a pushover. We’ll enjoy a meal, talk until late, then head north (us) and south (them) for home. We can hardly wait to be together. There aren’t enough days in a week or weeks in a month to see our kids and grandkids as often as we want. Thankfully, we love each other and being together. Life is busy, though, so the days in between are too many.

Like Steve, my dad was easy-going. Fun-loving and creative, he taught us all kinds of games and activities. He even made up games and would play them with us and the neighbor kids. I really don’t know how my folks made ends meet with eight children, but I don’t remember going without anything I needed. Dad’s work as a floor refinisher was demanding, but after dinner he would spend time entertaining us with board games, card games, and silly stuff. He called one of the games Inches, and he would start at our big toe and say, “One inch, two inches, three inches…” raising the tone of his voice higher and higher as he measured each of us with his thumb and index finger, counting toward our heads. By the time he reached the waist, the tickling, giggling, and wiggling would start, and he’d never reach our chins. That’s my dad.

Dad, I miss spending Father’s Days with you. I will take time to recall hearing you play boogie-woogie on the piano or leading Christmas carols, strumming the guitar. Thank you, Dad, for bringing joy to my life.

Miracle of Your Creation

The pond and slough behind our building host waterfowl, reptiles, and mammals. The Canada geese and their goslings have finally moved off, and along with them so have the droppings that make navigating the sidewalks a potentially slippery trip. I’ve watched a muskrat sneak its way across the pond and an egret standing stock still waiting for lunch to swim nearby.

This week, the turtles have been busy. On Sunday, I watched a female turtle lay her eggs into the hole she had dug by the bushes in front of our building. She finished by swiping some dirt into the hole to cover the eggs. On Monday my dog and I watched another turtle walk steadily back toward the pond through a group of evergreens. Along the walk around the pond, there are various holes dug, and I assume those are other nests.

Turtles near us don’t stay with their eggs and don’t appear to return to them once they are laid. I read that they lay them on land where they are more likely to survive. Near our pond it isn’t unusual for a mammal to gobble up the eggs in the unprotected holes. Last year around this time, I observed broken eggshells surrounding the holes soon after they were laid. As their presence proves, turtles continue to flourish in our area despite their reproduction methods.

I’ve snapped videos and pictures of these and other creatures and look back in wonder at the many ways our world supports all that God created to live in it. Genesis chapter 1 verse 31 says, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening and morning—the sixth day.”

A prayer: Dear Lord, from creatures that move along the ground to people created in your own image, you made everything to exhibit your glorious power, knowledge, and sovereignty. You say in Psalm 19, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.” Thank you for giving us eyes to see and ears to hear all you’ve made. Praise your glorious name, Elohim our Creator God! In Jesus’ name, Amen.