Let There Be Light

This blog posting was actually written  about a month ago but I felt such a great urge to share my “tomato story”, this one was pushed to the side.

I love nostalgia and delight often in the items our local paper chooses to print  in their weekly column called Rewrites. The item that caught my eye this morning (9/7) was an article written 125 years ago.

The date of September 3, 1888 was to mark the electrification of Elko. It would be interesting to research how the town folks readied themselves for this lighting up of their lives but it surely ranked up there with future events like the first radio set in town and then the first TV available. Or maybe by that time, new inventions were becoming blasé

I was raised on a farm in the Midwest but my memory as a child always included having electricity in our home—just not inside plumbing—but that’s another story. However, I have friends (yes, they’re still alive) who remember homes without electricity. That meant going to bed at the same time the chickens did or straining your eyes to read by an oil lamp (although I understand Aladdin lamps gave out very good illumination). Moving from that type of existence to electric lights had to have been a life changing experience—one that very few of us can even imagine. I suppose some Elko folk had gas lights so that adds another twist to the change-over to electrification.

A more recent “Rewrite” column mentioned that the last bastion of non-electrified Elko County was hooked into the grid in the 60’s in the settlement called Midas. The last time we were exploring ghost towns, Midas was our destination but there may still be some people in the are—we just didn’t see any sign of them.

If any of you have memories of your family or relatives living with gas light or oil lamps, please share, particularly if there was an air of excitement in a newly electrified home or place of business.

What a Difference A Rain Makes

The title is a “take off” on an old standard and probably makes little sense to any readers who have not lived in the Southwest desert areas. My experience with rain in northeastern Nevada is that it usually arrives in June, we then see little of it the rest of our short summer--and then it snows.

This years has been different with very cold temperatures in June  (I was bemoaning my non-garden in an earlier post) and little moisture. This post will chronicle the continuing saga of “the” tomato plant. Here it is pre-planting.  

As you may remember, “the” tomato plant started out as a “counter” plant bearing  one tomato about the size of a tennis ball and a  smaller one about the size of a golf ball. The larger tomato ripened and graced a Diehl salad one day. After having surmised that the freezing weather was over (by the end of June) I decided to plant "the" plant outside in hopes the golf-ball tomato would show its muscle and grow into something useful.

Three days later the July heatwave hit Elko and we had 7-10 days of temperatures at 101-105 or high 90’s. I finally checked the baby  fruit and discovered its little insides had totally cooked in the heat. Well, I did say it was a non-garden this year.

Have to admit I neglected the plant after that but then discovered that one branch of it seemed to be thriving.  Hoping I’m not sure what, I dumped a bucket of water on it periodically.

Now comes the irony. We had two rains last week and they could actually be measured. They even classified as rainstorms by Midwestern standards. One friend who lives near the foot of the Ruby Mountains (about 20 miles from Elko) said their rain gauge read 2.2 inches. Elko probably didn’t get that much but some storm drains here in town couldn’t handle the sudden rush of water.

 

At any rate, I checked “the” tomato plant  after the rains. Not only had it thrived on all that heavenly water, it now has 8-10 blossoms on it. (Sorry, they're hard to see because the picture was taken by a somewhat blind photographer, but they ARE there.)  

Poor things don’t realize those freezing temperatures are probably on the way again in 3-4 weeks (while I’m gone and can’t cover the plant). If it does live until I return, I will probably re- pot it and return it to the kitchen counter where it started. That way we may have two tomatoes/month through Christmas (or ten at the same time) and I can feel like I have afforded the plant a true "life cycle."

A Child’s Ta-Da

My sons gave me some hilarious memories during their growing up years. A favorite for Jeff was one day when he burst into the kitchen shouting, “Look Mom, I can twirl,” at which point he began to twist his body around in circles attempting to get himself dizzy enough to fall down. I don’t know who was laughing harder at the end of his exhibition—him or me.

For Brian, the topper has to be the time he and Jeff were playing in a mud puddle next to our driveway. Hearing sounds of little boy glee—which almost always means trouble—I went  outside to see what was going on. “See me, Mommy,” gurgled Brian. He was covered head to toe with mud, literally, helped very generously by his brother Jeff. As I recount this, I’m wondering how I ever cleaned him up, but it was probably first by turning a hose on him because he was far too muddy to put in the bathtub.

To quote Sheila Walsh in WHEN A WOMAN TRUSTS GOD, children seem to be born “with a God-given Ta-da inside, confident that everyone in the room will be overjoyed to see them make an entrance.”

Unfortunately, life has ways of erasing that self-assurance and enthusiasm. Fear, depression, shame, lack of self esteem can take over our lives, but we do our best to hide all that and pretend that we “have it all together.” (To any male readers out there, just because I'm referring to a book aimed at women doesn't mean it might not be applicable to you, too.)

Here’s an adult “ta-da.” The good news is that Jesus offers to help us overcome these unhappy emotions. He said “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Rivers of living water will brim and spill out of the depths of anyone who believes in me this way.” (John 7:37-3 MSG)  After just finishing a study on Revelation, I was especially struck by the invitation issued in the latter part of verse 17 of chapter 22: “And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.” (NKJV)

Sheila continues. “This isn’t just for those whose children are model students and whose husbands know how to load the dishwasher. …or made good choices up until this very moment. It is an invitation to anyone who has finally come to the place where they are tired of pretending that everything is fine

“It’s scary to come out of hiding if you have lived that way for years…[but] God knows everything about you and loves you [anyway].”  Seems to me that offer is worth taking the risk.

Had a “Mad” On Lately?

We all have had moments of anger whether that anger is “righteous indignation” or just plain being mad because we didn’t get our way or had what we considered our rights trampled on.

Wrath is an emotion that we humans probably couple with anger or “getting mad” at someone. However, it is a much stronger word than we might expect and it is also a word we don’t use much anymore.

Dean and I are still slogging through J.I. Packer’s book, KNOWING GOD and have just finished the chapter Packer wrote on God’s wrath. This particular topic was of special interest to me since the Small Group I have attended this summer just finished Beth Moore’s study on the New Testament book of Revelation—definitely some graphic examples of God’s wrath.

According to Packer’s dictionary definition, “wrath is deep intense anger and indignation.” God’s wrath is not an attribute we like to think about, even as believers. It’s much more comfortable to rhapsodize about God’s love, mercy, grace, forgiveness, etc. which are all truly attributes of God. But we are doing an injustice to our unbelieving friends and relatives if we ignore this wrathful side of God.

Packer mentions an interesting aspect of the way our culture views wrath as a loss of self control, wounded pride, or just plain bad temper. That might be a picture of human wrath; it is definitely not a picture of why God would be full of wrath. “God is only angry whey anger is called for.” His indignation is ALWAYS righteous. God’s wrath is never cruel, for cruelty is immoral, but His wrath is judicial or administering justice. The Bible never quibbles about God’s wrath; in fact His wrath is mentioned more times than His mercy, kindness and love. That statement really surprised me.

Packer brings out another side of this topic when he shows that mankind chooses (believe it or not) God’s wrath. See John 3:18-19. I seldom think about that choice since long ago I chose to accept God’s remedy for sin as opposed to choosing His wrath. It's not pleasant to think of friends and family members who have, to this point, chosen God's wrath.

Yet He IS a loving God and because He is, He has made a way of escape from His own wrath, that wrath being aimed at rebellion and unholiness. The good news (Gospel) is that Jesus left His throne in heaven to come to earth and did on a cross taking on Himself God’s wrath that should have been directed at we ornery human beings.

When I read how God’s wrath will be poured out on humankind during the last days, I can only marvel at His love that also provided a way of escape from that wrath through Jesus’ sacrifice in our place. That escape is really good news!!!

Looking for a Women's Bible Study?

If you are searching for a Women's Bible Study for the Fall semester or are interested in taking a closer look at the women mentioned in the Gospels, check out my book, THE WOMEN WHO KNEW HIM.

 

In case you haven’t seen a copy of the book, there are discussion starters at the end of each chapter/story which will hopefully be a springboard to additional questions and discussion. With 13 chapters/stories in the book, it will nicely cover 13 weeks from a start in early to mid-September and ending in early December.

I have printed below the discussion starters from the story of Simon’s mother-in-law.

·                    Grief was a central part of Miriam’s life prior to meeting Jesus. Discuss the manner in which you or family and friends have dealt with such grief.

·                    Miriam questioned whether she was good enough to be admitted to paradise/heaven. What are your thoughts about her feelings?

·                    When Miriam discovered that Simon and Andrew were leaving their business to fish for men, she dreaded another change in her life. How do you deal with changes that are thrust upon you? If your reactions to such changes are negative, what steps might you take toward a more positive outlook?

·                    Worry can be a crippling emotion. What do you worry about? Jesus plainly stated that we need not worry, but how do we prevent that mind-set?

·                    Think of a friend who reminds you of Hannah. What characteristic(s) of hers do you appreciate most, and why?

 You can look at the book by going to my website at http://diehl2360.wix.com/pat-diehl (Ctrl-click) and click on Book Purchase. Then click on the Amazon link under the second flower which will take you directly to the book site. You can read a sizeable chunk of chapter One as well as look at the Table of Contents. (If you use the book for a Bible study this Fall, I would urge you to save chapter 1 until December since that is the story of Mary, Jesus’ mother.)J

I just checked Amazon and they’re selling THE WOMEN WHO KNEW HIM at a 10% discount with free shipping on orders over $25. So if you’re planning to order something from Amazon anyway, what a deal!

Investments

Investments. Money stashed in stocks, bonds, or treasury notes, or even CDs and savings accounts. As important as monetary investments may be, they pale in comparison to how I invest  my life. Such an investment might be a cause I'm passionate about or perhaps even the reason I chose a particular career path.

 This past week Dean and I were able to attend a simulcast entitled Global Leadership Summit which was put together and implemented by Willow Creek Association, an arm of a huge church not too far from Chicago, IL. It was an excellent way to spend most of two days, well worth the time and the fee.

Our personal realm of leadership is not as widespread as in earlier years, but it seems to me that one's circle of influence continues until the day we leave planet Earth. Therefore, in at least one sphere or other, it appears that we all have a leadership role.

One speaker from Nairobi Kenya exhorted us all to pour our lives into (invest) the generation that is now growing up. That could mean someone at least 20-35 years younger than yourself. Those individuals are the future and “the future is now.”

The speaker quoted from Psalm 71:18 where David requests, “Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your might to all who are to come.” That kind of investment is one which extends beyond the investor’s death and, if the vision continues, will not expire until the end of time.

Many years ago I saw this type of investment when a young family on staff at Campus Ventures at the University of Wyoming invited our older son to live with them for a year in order to experience their family life and ministry. At the time I would have called that a sacrifice but they called it an investment. The fruits of their investment are now evident.

The Global Leadership Summit is an annual event but the outcomes from those who participated must surely make a daily difference in their world. It’s definitely an event to watch for and participate in come 2014.

Depression to Dimples

I awoke this morning wondering why I felt like the weight of the world was on my shoulders (could have been the fact that the coffee was not yet made).

Then I remembered the events of the past two days: news of a dear friend whose father just died (on top of her husband dying last year and her mother, the year before), hearing that another friend had a serious relationship rupture, finding out that much-anticipated guests were not able to make the trip to Elko, sharing in the sadness of a beloved aunt whose granddaughter is paying for poor choices, and the topper—my brother’s call last night, saying he was having surgery early this morning which could either be out-patient or in-patient, depending on what the surgeon found when they opened him up.

While I waited for the coffee to perk, I was foolish enough to fetch the newspaper from the front porch, opening it up to front page articles ranging from negative to right-down bad happenings.

I usually associate dimples with visible signs of happiness My “dimples” began with a fresh cup of coffee. Realizing that I had not started myday reading the best material, I turned to Psalms 119, the second subdivision of that long chapter, entitled “Beth” and was reminded of how important it is to mediate on God’s Word. The old “pledge of allegiance” to the Bible from Vacation Bible School days is taken from verse 11—“Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against God.”

It wasn’t too long after that, a major dimple appeared with a call from my groggy brother. He had just gotten home from the hospital, was sitting in his easy chair and wanted to assure me that all had gone well with his surgery.

I anticipate other “dimples” throughout the day but if they don’t materialize, I’m grateful for what I was given. I realize dimples are depressions with a joyful attitude, so the lesson for me today would be: Look for the dimples.