Month: April 2021

My back patio is my place to relax – mostly because that is the place Leo likes for me to be so he can explore and enjoy the outdoors.  So I have tried to make it comfortable.  My rocking chair is there along with a fire pit and an array of colorful, blooming flowers.  It really is a great place to be at the end of a long day.   One of my favorite additions is the string of lights.  That doesn’t sound like much or really a big deal.  But these big bulbs cast such a comforting light at night that I look forward to turning them on.  My ordinary back porch becomes an entirely different place when the sun goes down and the lights come on.  It is welcoming and inviting.  I am amazed at how much a few lights can change things.  Lighting really does matter.

The light that guides our path matters too.  So many times, we don’t realize what or who we are allowing to guide us.  We don’t stop to consider what we are using to illumine our way and our lives.  We can think we are following the right way – at least until we look around and notice it really is quite dark and doesn’t look at all where we should be.  

I think of how John describes Jesus as the light.  He is the light in a dark world.  He allows us to see the way.  He is our ultimate guide in a land where we would otherwise stumble and fall.  He shows us the right direction.  But this also means we need to look to him.  We need to have him as our light.  We need to seek him.  He gives us all we need, we don’t always recognize it.  The light of Jesus will always lead us to a life of love.  It will always be about loving God and loving others – always.  So if our path doesn’t lead us there, we may want to consider what is lighting our way.  God’s light is the light of love.  

Focus Scripture:

John 1:3-5

 ³ All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being ⁴ in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

I have tried planting flowers around the back patio.  There are a few unexpected successes, but for the most part, it is failure.  I do much better by putting them in pots around the patio and enjoying them there.  There isn’t anything wrong with the soil, it is just fine.  They get the same amount of sunshine as the potted plants.  They are not overtaken by weeds.  Their nemesis to survival is Leo’s paws.  He doesn’t seem to notice there are plants coming out of the ground that he should not trample. I have planted them out of his normal path so he would not run over them in his daily hunt.  The problem only happens when he is chasing bugs.  He doesn’t seem to notice anything in his way when he does that.  He will topple tables, jump up on the side of the house, leap over the pots, and of course, walk right over the plants in the pursuit.  He doesn’t mean to run into and over everything.  He is focused on the goal and the goal only.  He misses what is around because he has something to accomplish.  In his view, nothing is really in his way.  

I wonder how many beautiful things we miss in our pursuit of a goal.  I wonder how many ideas we trample as we seek what we think we want.  Could it be that, like Leo, we are so focused on what we think is necessary that we miss the things which are tender and growing around us?  Could we miss the joys and the excitement in our quest for something bigger and better?  Might we find life has so much more to offer when we pay attention to the flowers rather than running them over? 

I could certainly benefit from noticing the everyday joys growing around me.  To experience God’s majesty in our daily quest may change our whole perspective for the day.  The thing we are chasing may not even be what we need.  What are you trampling in order to reach something else?

Focus Scripture:

Psalm 19:1

The heavens are telling the glory of God;
    and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

Leo and I were sitting on the back patio on a cool, crisp morning.  He was doing his normal – chasing bugs and pointing out birds.  I noticed he stopped at the edge of the fence, he saw something that had his attention.  He backed up some and stopped again.  He continued to back up, sit down and watch.  He didn’t point out anything.  He didn’t bark or even whine.  He just watched.  Something captured his attention.  I looked too but never saw anything.  Leo is not one for sitting around outside – there are too many things to enjoy.  But this particular morning, he spent an unusually long time just sitting and watching.  Something I could not see had his complete attention.  

It could be Leo sensed danger in something just beyond the fence and decided to keep an eye out.  It could be something was alarming to him, but not in a way in which he looked frightened.  He just watched.  

We don’t all experience things in the same way.  Two people can be in the same place at the same time with the same view and have a completely different experience.  It really depends on what we are looking for.  What do you see?  Sometimes we are only trying to reach a destination or finish a project.  We don’t experience much along the way because we have the end goal in mind.  Sometimes we end up getting distracted by things around we hadn’t even noticed before, simply because we chose to see.  It could be if we took the time to sit and watch, to really pay close attention, we may find there is so much more than we ever noticed.  

We don’t always see because we don’t always take the time to look.  Instead of rushing through your day today, take a few moments to see, really view the goodness around.  You may be surprised at all you have been missing.  

Focus Scripture:

Mark 8:18

¹⁸ Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear? And do you not remember?

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

We can often make following Jesus more complicated than it really is.  Jesus definitely calls his followers to a radically different life.  But the components of this life are at the core of our everyday existence.  To take care of someone, to love them through action, is one of the most essential parts of following.  It is the very essence of what it means to follow.  Jesus gives examples such as giving a cup of cold water and providing help to widows and orphans.  He shows that loving crosses all kinds of boundaries – in fact, he doesn’t seem to notice any boundaries at all.  He sees his children.  His children are to love and care for others who are his children and don’t even realize it yet.  He opens the way to love beyond reason and care with all we have.  

When Peter seems to have lost his way, Jesus brings him back with simple requests.  Jesus tells him that if he loves him, he will feed and tend.  He will take care of the most basic needs as Jesus would.  He would shepherd and love the sheep as he has been taught to do.  Actually, Peter is to tend and feed as Jesus has been doing for him for the last couple of years.  Notice Jesus doesn’t send him on any particular theological discovery.  He doesn’t ask him to fill out a test to find out what he knows.  He asks him to feed and tend.  Jesus knows Peter.  He knows his heart.  Peter has been at the feet of Jesus.  And Jesus loves him beyond measure.  In response, feed and tend.  

What does following look like for you?  Maybe it is time to find our way back like Peter did – feed and tend.  Blessings my friends.

Focus Scripture:

John 21:15

¹⁵ When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

It can feel like being a hamster on a wheel, round and round and round.  We work to do the right thing and we make a mistake.  We feel like we have a problem behind us and then it hits us right between the eyes.  We have aspirations of doing good and Monday comes.  We have a goal of improving and we can end up feeling worse than when we started – at least that’s how we feel.  

It can be hard to start again.  Even when what we are doing is not good, we can become locked in the sequence – a captive to the usual.  To completely change course can be more than challenging.  It requires constant effort.  And because it requires such constant attention, we can get off course.  When we go the wrong way, it can even take time to get back where we know we need to be.  This applies to so many areas of our lives – from spirituality to finances to our health to our attitudes.  We want to do right.  We have a vision of what is better and good.  We just don’t always get it right.  And sometimes we end up having to start again…and again…and again.  

How many times can we start again?  How often do we get fresh starts?  How many new beginnings are there?  We get…as many as it takes.  As long as we are beginning again, we are making progress.  We are finding new life.  We are becoming more like the person we were created.  When we continue to get up and try again, we are learning and growing.  We are given the opportunity to start again because we are loved by a God of new starts.  He offers us new life.  He offers us new joys we haven’t even seen or experienced.  

Maybe today is your next new start.  Once more, get up and let’s go.  Good awaits.

Focus Scripture:

Romans 7:15

¹⁵ I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

Leo was so focused this morning.  He found a spot he could survey the entire yard and sat down.  He looked, he watched, and he listened.  The sounds of the birds seemed to be even more pronounced today than usual.  Their little voices sing with praise to the Creator.  Leo, of course, wanted to chase one.  But in order to do that, he had to see where the closest one was – the one most likely to be chased.  So he carefully assessed his surroundings.  He canvased it all.  And then, he decided it wasn’t worth it and found a stick to eat instead.

We could learn so much simply by paying attention and intently listening.  The clutter in our minds can cloud the messages of goodness all around us.  God is providing us with reminders of his abiding presence.  It’s all here.  Most of the time, we pass it all by.  And then we wonder why we don’t sense God’s presence.  He is here, we are not (well, at least not completely).  We know why.  There are a million things to do and to think about.  We are planning meals or taking care of kids or thinking about our doctor appointments or worried about the stack of work waiting for us on our desk.  Our hearts, minds, and ears are all cluttered with worries and anxieties.  We don’t hear well in the muffled world we roam.

The key is simply to stop.  That’s it.  Just stop for a moment, find a place to perch, and listen.  Just look around – really look.  Hear all the messages of goodness.  Feel the warmth of a new day.  Know that you are not alone.  God is with us.

Focus Scripture:

Proverbs 15:30-31

³⁰ The light of the eyes rejoices the heart,
    and good news refreshes the body.
³¹ The ear that heeds wholesome admonition
    will lodge among the wise.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

One of the many joys of spring is watching some of the plants from last year begin to appear from underneath the soil.  What seemed to be gone, lost beneath the soil, sprouts.  I do understand there are plants made to do this.  They lie dormant during the winter only to be reborn in the spring.  It is such a beautiful process to watch.  What is even more surprising are the plants I didn’t plan on coming back.  Last year, I grew quite a few potted plants.  Leo isn’t necessarily gentle with the flowers growing in the ground.  He doesn’t seem to notice the tender stems appearing.  In his excitement to chase a bird or a fly, he tramples most anything in his way. So potted plants are the way to go.  Last year, after they had all died, I threw them all into a hole Leo had dug – hoping some of the soil would help to fill the craters where he finds lizards.  Last week, I noticed that one of the plants I had thrown into the hole was beginning to grow, bloom even.  So I dug it up out of the hole and put it in a much better place.  It is now thriving in its new home.  I would have never guessed it would have made it.  I didn’t plant it in the hole so it was exposed to all the elements of the winter.  I really just threw it in there.  But it found a way to survive, and then grow.  It has new life and it is producing beautiful yellow flowers already.  What a joyful surprise!

God has a way of doing the same with us.  We may not have the best environment.  We may not have the ideal planting situation.  Our soil may be a little rough and we may feel a little trampled.  But God can make something amazing.  He can produce a new creation, something no one expects, not even us.  He knows our potential.  He knows the goodness inside.  He knows the love he has planted deep in our hearts.  And he knows exactly what we need.  Sometimes we just need shelter while we become stronger.  Sometimes we need a new place to thrive.  Whatever it is, God knows and he uses this to produce something brand new.  We can become a new creation in him.  What a gift it is!  Bloom, my friends.  God is up to something good.

Focus Scripture:

2 Corinthians 5:17

¹⁷ So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! 

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

I love to watch Leo chase flies.  He is so determined and very focused.  He doesn’t stop moving and is always on the lookout.  He will run around the firepit over and over and over again.  I get dizzy just watching him.  I often wonder why in the world he would do this.  His averages of actually catching a fly are very low.  He does occasionally get one and seems as shocked as anyone else.  He doesn’t chase flies for the actual results – there is joy just in the chase.  He seems to find unending fun from simply chasing.  To some of us, that likely sounds ridiculous.  Why would we do something we knew would not actually end up not yielding any result?  What if we just found joy in doing it anyway?  It would seem frustrating to me.  But as I watch Leo, the joy radiating from his entire body is contagious.  

Our lives might look different if we found joy in the simple things we do each day.  That whole sentence probably caused some eyes to roll.  Who finds joy in the things we do each day?  Yet, Jesus has given us life and a life more abundant.  Abundance, for me, means joy- not stuff.  So if we are given a joyful life, why do we often look as if it is anything but joyful?  What are we missing?  

After Jesus’ resurrection, he did simple things.  He walked down a road with people who didn’t know him – and then had a meal with them after teaching them a few good things.  He had breakfast on the beach with his friends after they had a long, unsuccessful night of fishing.  He cooked, they ate.  He spent time with others, showing them love, and eating with them.  There were meals!  And these meals were joyful.  It wasn’t what they ate that mattered.  It was who they ate with that changed things.  This wasn’t their first or last meal.  It was one of the most important, though.  They were having a meal with Jesus.  There was joy shared in the simple things.  Joy can be found in the ordinary.  

If we seek it, we may find joy is right before us.  If we are willing to enjoy the journey rather than the destination, we may find life really is abundant.  Joy is waiting to be discovered in the middle of the ordinary.

Focus Scripture:

John 21:12-13

¹² Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” because they knew it was the Lord. ¹³ Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

There are plenty of people willing to condemn.  There are lines of people looking to find fault in others.  The groups of people willing to show the love of Christ…not as many.  Continually the Bible teaches us to love one another.  We are given direction on what this means.  We are given an example of how it looks.  We are shown time and time again how to show love to one another.  Yet, it seems to be one of those things which slips right by us.  It takes effort.  It takes going the extra step.  It takes thinking outside of ourselves.  It takes everything which may feel uncomfortable, at least for a moment.  Yet, to show love to one another is the goal.  It is the focus.  If we can show love to one another, we are on the path to becoming more like Christ.  

People don’t always make it easy to love them.  Frankly, we don’t always make it easy to love us either.  Sometimes it just happens.  But more often, it takes a conscious effort to show love, especially to those who are less than lovable.  That’s where Christians make the difference.  That’s where others recognize how much we love Jesus.  Love is the key, the pivotal point.  We know because Jesus showed us the ultimate love.  How can we not make the time and the effort to show love to one another?

Focus Scripture:

1 John 3:11

¹¹ For this is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another.

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery

We celebrate Resurrection.  We give thanks for the sacrifice.  We hear how we can live free.  We begin to take in the love which has been poured out for us.  Yet the Monday after Easter can look very similar to the Monday before Easter.  We too easily fall back into our routines, leaving no trace of Easter in our lives.  Other than a hidden missed egg which may appear a few days or weeks from now, it will seem as though Easter has come and gone.  If we fully embrace all of Easter, this cannot be the case.  It cannot be that we go about our lives as if Resurrection never happened.  We must reflect the love which has been so generously given to us.  

I understand how this can be a challenge.  Everything about our Easter Monday can seem mundane.  We often do the same job and are in the same mindset.  But the day after the Resurrection was anything but mundane for the women, for the disciples, and for those who had the joy of encountering Jesus again, for the first time.  Meals were enjoyed, eyes were opened, hearts were changed and nothing was the same – at least not for his followers.  They certainly lived in the same world and wandered the same community.  But they had been changed.  They had been a part of something miraculous, earth-shattering even.  Everything around them may have been familiar, but they were anything but the same.  They were being made new.  Their entire lives were being transformed.  Jesus is alive – and that means something.

I can’t help but wonder if our lives should reflect a change as well.  Shouldn’t we live more like Christ?  The ultimate example of loving God and loving others is right before us.  How are we begin made new?  How are we being transformed?  Resurrection does that.

Focus Scripture:

John 20:19-20

¹⁹ When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” ²⁰ After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 

Photos included in Devotions are captured by David Cain – The Cain Gallery.  Photos are available for sale by contacting The Cain Gallery