Is Christ beautiful?

"One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple." (Psa 27:4 ESV)

A story.

The property was deserted, a tangle of weeds, broken branches and litter mingled in with what might be take to be the remains of - maybe a flower bed. Broken windows, a door that would not swing shut, and a sagging roof line along with muted peeling paint highlighted the structure. All the neighborhood though the guy was crazy, a fool, for sure. He himself was not a handsome man, just average. He did not exactly move in, but he did live there, perhaps one might say he camped there.

The demolition was not total – some wood removed here and there so that structural pieces might be torn out and replaced. Then doing a stretch of days, predicted by the weather man to be fairly dry, the roof came off, only to be made new.

By late fall new windows and doors hung in their place ready to do what they were designed to do. All winter lights shone through those windows causing speculation, leading to comments about which room was being worked on, accompanied by the occasional “I wonder if he might be warm enough in there?”

Spring came, and less smoke wafted from the chimney. Now, almost a year had passed. The litter and junk seemed to be disappearing, the digging began. Weeds came out, the soil was built up, new and old bulbs, plants and seeds took their places. During the summer and fall gardens took on an air of promise – 'Wait – another year or two!'

Finished work was evident on the outside when winter returned. Now there was some expressed admiration, and a hope of someday seeing what the inside of the place might look like.

Spring marked a continued expansion of the dominion of this man. Then he was gone!

It was not until nearly two weeks later that the local gossips eagerly reported for a fact the he was back and that he had a woman with him, a cow, a horse a few sheep and some chickens, as well.

Over the years the family was blessed and grew. He kept the place well and all agreed that she was a wonderful companion. New comers would remark on the house and the beauty of the grounds, but the old timers they knew – a ruin had been restored – a man had come, a man with a heart for work, sweat and long hours. A man with skilled hands and a heart for that which is good and fruitful. He (along with her) was beautiful!

What beauty is there to behold when we look upon Christ?

(To be continued)

On being a single parent

First, I am not a single parent and the experience I am about to relay in this blog is no attempt to pretend that I have been a single parent.

My wife was away for 15 days. While this was not the first time she had left me to be with our older children to help with a new grandchild, this trip marked a few transitions for us. A few months ago we put Mom in a home. I had always been more or less tied down to the house, unless someone was there to watch her during previous absences on my wife's part.

Our youngest, now almost sixteen has helped out with the duties of watching her grandma, and once in a while we would have another lady watch her if we both had to be away. This time it just our youngest and myself! Freedom!!??

Well, in the name of honesty we did allow some cleaning to slide until the last couple of days, but the house did not turn into a total disaster, as we did do a few daily chorus. Also, with unlimited calling as well as the internet we were not cut off from contact with mom. And as a father of four daughters I have come to accept that dads just can not fill the role when a daughter calls and asks “Is mom there?”

Our baby, and I knew this ahead of time, has a few activities to which her mom usually drives her. Ok, I thought no problem. Then there is something referred to as father-daughter relationship. Daughters do need to be communicated with, given attention, cooked for, encouraged, corrected and just plan have some time with their parents. A note, covering all 15 days, posted on the refrig just would not do the job.

So having this delightful creature around meant something to me … “You have a daughter and for the time being you are her only parent within normal speaking range!”

What would change in my schedule, in my carefully crafted list of priorities? Work time? ME TIME? How important to me was it that I had a daughter to parent? What sacrifices would I make for her well being?

Certainly, if, in the will of God, my wife would be taken from us, this issue of being a single parent would become all too real, close and personal. How would I do? I know that I am thankful to the Lord for my wife, the mother of our children, for all her parenting. And I acknowledge that she can not be replaced, but if she were not here, I would be called upon to make permanent changes in my life. What would I be willing to give up? To change? Permanently, or at least until she got a few years older, to take her places, parent her, do father-daughter things and time, and not to let our relationship deteriorate into that of being isolated housemates?

My hat is off to all single parents who have taken this responsibility well. May the Lord give you grace day to day.

Christ is risen!

Amen!