Bicycling in the Park

*Thanks go out to my daughter Shelley for this post. Thank you, Shelley, for the story AND thank you for making your mother smile because when this happened, you thought to yourself, "There's a spiritual lesson in this!"

Last Saturday was a beautiful day in Apex, North Carolina, so Shelley and my three-year-old grandson Tyler visited two of their city's lovely public parks. Tyler is getting better and better at riding his bicycle, and so they took it with them and he rode along several paths. At one point, when the ground was a little more rough, he wanted to give up, but Shelley encouraged him to keep trying while she pushed with one hand. Tyler started going faster, and a smile came to his face. Completely unaware that Shelley's hand was still on the back of the bike, he whooped, "Look at me, Mommy. I'm doing it all by myself!"

That's us, isn't it? We get discouraged and want to quit. God reassures us of His presence and help. Then, when we begin to experience some success, we yell, "Look at what I'm doing!", forgetting that God's hand is behind us, pushing or lifting or steadying our way.

I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonders.
I will be glad and rejoice in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.
- Psalm 9:1-2

I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord,
for he has been good to me.
- Psalm 13:5-6

It was not by their sword that they won the land,
nor did their arm bring them victory;
It was your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face,
for you loved them.
- Psalm 44:3

As for me, I will always have hope;
I will praise you more and more.
My mouth will tell of your righteousness,
of your salvation all day long,
though I know not its measure.
I will come and proclaim your mighty acts,
O Sovereign Lord;
I will proclaim your righteousness, yours alone.
Since my youth, O God, you have taught me,
and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.
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.
- Psalm 71:14-18

Mmm, good!

"Getchye a sody from the cooler up front," Granddaddy said. We had just stepped into his little, corner grocery store from the humid Texas afternoon. I crossed the creaky wooden floor to the large Coca-Cola cooler and slide the heavy top to one side. Peering down into the dark depths, I let the ice cold air fan my face before I tilted several bottles and finally found what I was looking for. Ah, strawberry Nehi. I put the drink down onthe floor while I tugged the lid back in place. Then, grabbing the bottle with both hands, I worked the cap under the metal opener and carefully pressed down. My thirsty throat could hardly wait for that first, sweet, cold, fizzy swallow to arrive. When it did, a smile of pure satisfaction graced my face.

I wonder how many splendid moments like that my mama experienced in her young life. Though she was seven when the Great Depression came slamming through the nation, her family always had enough food because her daddy owned the grocery store. Willie and "Nanny," his wife, were kind to those who struggled to make ends meet, and God blessed them for it. Not only did their family not go hungry; one could say that my mama and her brother grew up "well-fed."

By the time I was born, Mama was only slightly plump, but I remember her saying often, "Everything's better with butter or cream." Mama was a smart lady, and I wholeheartedly agree with her, though I would probably add, "or cheese, or sour cream, or cream cheese." She and I certainly would have seen eye to eye with James Beard, a well-known twentieth century chef who declared, "Good bread is the most fundamentally satisfying of all foods; and good bread with fresh butter, the greatest of feasts." And of course, butter comes from cream. I know this first hand because once, when I was a newlywed, I was whipping cream for strawberry shortcake, whipped it a little too long, and oops - butter.

Before the cooking light craze of recent years, people considered any recipe made with cream top notch, often saving it for special occasions. In fact, through the years, cream has symbolized the best, the richest. An old song proclaimed, "You're the cream in my coffee, ...I'd be lost without you." And we've all heard, "He's the cream of the crop." Then there's the one that even children know: "I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream."

Here's some joyful news, friends. We Christians are cream. God gave His only Son to die for us. He says that because of Jesus' sacrifice, "if we confess our sin, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). Ephesians 2:4-6 tells us, "because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive in Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus." Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, God has transferred His own heart into our lives. We are reborn. It is sometimes very hard to believe, but nevertheless, it is true and as we accept His sacrifice and turn from our sin, He allows us to rise to the top as cream does on milk. Then He scoops us off and sets us apart for good works. Just as cream may be poured into hot coffee to make it delicious, we may be poured into a difficult situation to be a blessing. Furthermore, sometimes cream must be whipped in order to serve its purpose as the beautiful, tasty, finishing touch on a dessert. Similarly, we may have to undergo trials before we can attain the triumph of glorifying God with our lives.

Yes, dear Christian friends, we are cream, saved to glorify Him.

Hallelujah!

Bilirubin

Wow, I just noticed I haven't blogged in two months. Well, my life has been pretty busy since Christmas. I made an eight-day trip to California to see my sister and brother-in-law (and nephew and niece-in-law and great niece). My friend Sherrie started her chemotherapy, and I've been praying for her and thinking about her and talking to her a good bit. I spoke at a state conference for women, so I had to spend extended periods of time preparing for that. And, oh yeah, I had a new grandson! (Well, I didn't have him, Heather did, but I was there!)

Joshua Bryant Lee, Jr. was born on February 6. David and I arrived in Birmingham ten hours before he was born, and I stayed 12 days after to help Heather and Josh with the adjustment to a newborn. Bryant and I spent some special hours together, mainly in the middle of the night.

The hardest part of those first days was that Bryant's bilirubin was too high. Elevated bilirubin causes jaundice and jaundice causes some other unwanted things, so we had to do everything the doctor advised to get Bryant's bilirubin down. The pediatrician prescribed a "tanning bed" sort of contraption for Bryant to lie on every minute he wasn't eating or being changed. Here's a picture of him in the tanning bed. The turquise "blanket" and arms were sort of like a snuggie you put on him. The back of it was open, and it velcroed to the base, which was a light. So while he lay there in a sort of straight jacket, he was getting light from behind. The light supposedly drew out the bilirubin into his pee and poop so he could get rid of it. (Of course, that's the scientific explanation!)



After two days on the light, his bilirubin was down enough for us to quit. Praise the Lord!! The doctor advised us to still set him in direct sunlight for 20 minutes three times a day. We did that for a few days more, and he was as good as new, precious and whole.

I don't think there's a spiritual lesson in this, but there is a good analogy. Exposure to the Light helps pull out the wicked ways in us and dispose of them. I love these verses about light:
"For God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory displayed in the face of Christ" (2 Cor. 4:6).
"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light" (1 Peter 2:9).