Uppy! Uppy!

Uppy, uppy! Carry me, carry me!

Carry me Lord when I am feeling tired.
Carry me when I doubt I can keep up,
Not just with the world,
But also keeping up with all you are doing in the world.
Carry me when I am feeling weak.
Carry me when I feel like giving up.
Carry me when I feel I might run out of hope.

Uppy, uppy!
Hold me close so we can look face to face.
I just want to be in your presence.
Let me see your smile.
Let me physically feel your touch, your presence.
Wrap your arms around me and just hold me.
Help me feel safe and secure in your loving arms.
Let me feel your compassionate love.

Uppy, uppy! Hold me high to see your perspective.
Give me your vision. Give me your long-term view.
Help me see what you see, in today’s reality and
What you see in the possibilities for the future.
Help me see the possibilities for my future.
Give me dreams and visions of your plans for me.
Open my eyes to what is really happening out there.
Open my eyes to what is really happening in me and through me.

Carry me, carry me! Carry me forward to where you are moving.
Carry me to where I can see your power and love at work.
Carry me to places where I will see you as the commander
Of thousands of mighty warrior angels.
Carry me to places that will reveal your glory.
Carry me to where your kingdom has come and is being displayed –
Here on earth as it is in heaven.

Carry me gently. Calm my fears.
Be patient with me. Dry me tears.

Uppy, uppy!
Gently lift me up.
Lovingly hold me.
Boldly carry me where I dare not go alone.
Let me feel your love today.

Uppy, uppy!

Big Bog 1

We visited Big Bog State Park last weekend. At least parts of the park are very new. And I commend the state of Minnesota for preserving this unique area.

I was kind of ignorant of bogs. But it sounded like something new and different. In 2005, the state built a mile long boardwalk into the largest bog in the lower 48 states. It is roughly 70 miles wide by 30 miles north and south. The bog is mostly a peat bog with lots of the peat moss found at gardening stores. If I understand correctly, the dead plant life just builds up over time because it is too cold to decay it all into "soil".

The bog is definitely wet - although that isn't obvious at the surface. In spots, the actual soil is up to 15 feet below the surface. At pretty much any point, if a person tries to walk on the bog, they will sink knee-deep or deeper. It is a very unique ecosystem.

So the boardwalk gives us all a chance to experience the bog without being bogged down or stranded for days.

Walking along the boardwalk is kind of like staying on the straight and narrow. Straying from the path laid out before you can have some negative consequences.

If only following God's will and desires was so obvious... Even with good intentions, sometimes the path is not very obvious at all.

But God leads us in a variety of ways. Sometimes the path is very obvious. We may follow willingly. Or we might try to go our own way. Or perhaps we will delay, hoping that path will remain an option if we come back to it later. Even if the path is clear, it does not guarantee that every person will take that path.

Sometimes the path is pretty clear. But we have a very hard time going down the path. Fortunately, God is pretty patient. If we seek to please him, he will honor even our baby steps as we tentatively move out in a new direction.

Sometimes a narrow path seems too limiting. God gives us free will. If you don't wish to have time with him and be on his team for his purposes, he lets you go (with a few tears). God won't force a person to spend millions of years with him and worshipping him. He will let them go to hell. It isn't God's preference. But he lets people choose hell on their own.

And sometimes, even for believers, the path isn't as clear as we would like. An obvious path through the bog/wilderness/life would sure be handy. Sometimes it is appropriate to wait for further direction. But more often, we are called to step forward in baby steps and more will be revealed later (perhaps when we are ready for it). We can't let fear paralyze us from moving forward into new things. Quite often, God is just waiting for us to take those first steps.

When the path is revealed, how will you respond?

Storm Approaching

It is a strange time to be blogging. For the first time in years, a potential tornado system is approaching within a few miles of my home.

But it is good. And in some ways I am at peace if this is "the one". Times like these are good occasions to consider what is important to us. What matters? What 1% of our possessions really matters?

I hope to retain some health. And I hope to have at least some of my "life" stored on my computer saved.

But ultimately, besides my son, my writing and creations may be my legacy.

What will you leave behind? How is the world different because you were here? How has eternity been effected through you? What matters? How will you impact the world in the days and years ahead?

It appears we might only get baseball-sized hail. So I will probably survive with minor damage. But the questions remain. What matters?

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I realize this may sound strange to some people. But one of the reasons I was fairly content about the storm was that I had prayed. I asked for God's protection, including using angels, to guard the house. But, if more appropriate, do whatever would give him the most glory.

One of the things I have liked about my-cast (free on the web) is that I can put the locations I want on the weather map. So I have my family mapped out as I watch the weather patterns.

As you can see in the image below, the severest part of the storm that approached from several miles away, split just as it got to my house. Then the line of pink reformed again. About three miles away there was golf ball sized hail. There had been tornadic activity and baseball sized hail earlier in the storm. One place within an hour's drive had a roof blown off a house. Numerous trees went down. Water was up to car windows in some areas. I just got a much needed rain.

The words "witness" and "testimony" have become such churchy and religious words these days. But in reality, a witness that testifies just tells a story. "This is what I saw..." "This is what I experienced..."

So part of the evening's experience is my chance to tell a little story that gives God honor for the way he is working in our lives. And it was a fitting ending after having a good time of community worship at the park in Forest Lake tonight.

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If the weather was God's favor and not just a coincidence, it was not because I deserve anything special. It is true that God does show favor and honor certain people and actions at times. But the vast majority of the time, God's actions are not because of who we are or what we've done. He acts in spite of who we are. Grace is undeserved favor. And even as I update this blog in the early morning hours, it is clear how much I need his mercy. Even before getting out of bed and doing anything, our thinking can stray to thoughts that do not honor God, or even ourselves. I need his mercy, badly. Fortunately he is patient with me. It is a new day to start fresh.