A Season for Remembrance and Reflection

Hi, and welcome back from what appears to have been a very busy holiday season for most of us–and let me take this time to offer my sincerest wishes for what I hope will be the best of all New Years!  Since we are already well into the month of January, it would appear that we have made the transition from 2013 to 2014 without any serious calamities—except maybe for the weather, which has been brutally cold across so much of the nation this winter.  I don’t know how you usually usher in a new year, but I suppose that for most of us, one way of marking the occasion is by spending a little time remembering the events of the outgoing year, and reflecting on what we may, or may not, have learned as we attempted to navigate through the uncharted courses so often presented to us by such events.

For me, although I started out 2013 with high hopes and great expectations that a number of long-awaited changes would be taking place in my life and the life of my family during the upcoming year, I am sorry to have to say that none of the ones I had hoped for came to pass.  There were, however, two other events, completely unforeseen by me at the time, which did revolutionize our lives during this past year. The first one occurred when our youngest son enlisted in the Navy.  He signed up last winter, left for boot camp the day after his twentieth birthday in June, graduated in August and left immediately for training to become a personnel specialist. Then, in October, after almost three weeks of leave, he left us for his first duty station in Naples, Italy—the place where he will spend the next three years of his life.  Talk about a major change!  Here was someone who had never flown on a plane until the day he left for boot camp, and now he is half a world away; well on his way toward becoming, what he would like to think of as, “a well-seasoned man of the world!”

As for the second major event, that one concerned me and it, too, was a major change that took place over the course of several months, and one which ultimately led to my commitment to do this blog.  Just like my son who had never flown before, I had had no prior experience with blogging—in fact, when I started out, I didn’t even know what a blog was—and yet, as I explained in “My Journey to the Land of Blog,” I proceeded to do what was previously unthinkable when I launched out in faith in May with the posting of my first “reflection.”  Now, seven months and twenty-two reflections later, I would like to believe that I am well on my way toward becoming not only “a well-seasoned blogger” but more importantly, a highly credible one, as well.

When I started out on this journey, there were only two things that I was sure of:  the name for the blog (for an explanation of where it came from, see “A Detour Around the Trees”), and that this was something that the Lord wanted me to do.  Because of the name, I knew that it was God’s intention for me to take the truth that He has revealed in His Word and use my voice, a literary one in this instance, to explain that truth to others; and, because I knew that He wanted me to do it, I was certain that He would go before me and make plain the path He wanted me to take.  Personally, I would have liked to have been able to publish more often than I have, but discerning the Lord’s thoughts and bringing mine into alignment with His isn’t something that happens overnight—especially when family and job responsibilities have a way of diverting my attention from the task.  As we all know, life keeps happening and often has a way of coming between us and the very best of our intentions.

I feel certain that there have been times when it seemed like I was wandering aimlessly—in the trees mostly—however, during this past week, as I paused to remember and reflect on where we’ve been and all that we have talked about since last May, I was pleased to discover that much of what may have seemed to be a lot meandering on my part was actually a progressive line of thought covering many of the basics of our faith, with  one or two of the more controversial and possibly misunderstood ones thrown in as a bonus!

As a way of reviewing what we have done so far, I listed the titles of the reflections in the order in which they were published, and this is the way that they lined up:

The Prophet is In, Just Bring Your own Snacks

[For There Ever to Have Been a “Me,” There First Had to be a “She”]

My Journey to the Land of Blog

Life is Simple…

…But No One Said It Was Going to Be Easy

Welcome to the Overcomer’s Club

[A Pop-Sized Picture of the Father]

A Pause, and a Cause, for Worship

The Way We Are Isn’t the Way We Were…

…But Why Couldn’t We Stay the Way We Were?

And Now, The Drama Begins…

EXTRA!  EXTRA!  READ ALL ABOUT IT!

[Predestined to Be a Child of God]

Loose Threads…

…And More Loose Threads

Loose Threads Require Redemption…

Redemption, A Story Told by Trees

[A Detour Around the Trees]

Treasures of Truth…

…Truth Hidden in the Trees

Tree Treasures, Part II

Of Trees and Tapestries

The ones that are bracketed are the reflections that are somewhat parenthetical to the subjects dealt with by the rest:  numbers 2 and 7 were Mother’s Day and Father’s Day tributes to my parents, number 13 was a reflection that dealt with the often-problematic issue of predestination and election, and number 18 was a long overdue explanation for the naming of this blog.

The remaining reflections, then, followed a very logical progression of thought:
–   In numbers 1 and 3, I introduced myself and explained how I came to undertake this blog;
–   Then, in numbers 4, 5, 6, and 8, we moved on to address the fundamental question that everyone must face at some point in their lives—which is, what is the meaning of life?;
–   In numbers 9-12, in order to further expound on life’s meaning, we launched into a discussion of the human dilemma and its origins;
–   While in numbers 14-17, we learned about the solution to that dilemma, which is nothing less than the redemption that God has provided for us through Christ;
–   Finally, in numbers 19-22, we were introduced to a slightly different presentation of the story of redemption—a presentation of the story as told by trees—and to two of the ways that the Lord revealed Himself to us through the story.

As you can see, in the relatively short time that we have been meeting together, we have covered quite a few of the basic, yet most important, issues of life, along with a few extras—but where does that leave us now; where, then, are we supposed to go to from here?  Of course, I am always full of ideas on that subject; however, I thought that since we have gotten to know one another a little and seem to be at a relatively good point in our relationship, this might be a good time to ask you for your ideas as to what course you would like our discussions to take during the coming year.  I mean, I hope by now you feel comfortable enough to tell me:
–   What you consider to be the greatest challenges that you face in your Christian walk;
–   If you have any problems reading and understanding the Bible; and,
–   If so, which parts give you the most difficulty?
–   Is there a particular subject in the Bible that you would like to see addressed?
–   If you could have one question about spiritual things answered, what would it be?

In providing me with some feedback as to where you are and what your needs may be, it is my hope that we can make our visits together far more interactive and productive.  Toward that end, you can post your suggestions or questions at the end of this reflection, or you can address them to me more privately through the “Contact Me” page on the website.

I hope that during this season of remembrance and reflection you will set aside a little time to think about where you are now and where you would like to be spiritually one year from now, when we make yet another transition from this year to the next.  It is my prayer that we will each be able to say that we are more like Jesus than we are now; and nothing would give me greater pleasure than knowing that I was able to help you along, in whatever way I can, in that process.

In “We Remember,” the Newsboys remind us of the things we should keep calling to mind, in this or any other season.