The real thing

   Fads are strange phenomena.  For no apparent reason a certain, toy, game, or fashion becomes what everyone wants.  I can't ever figure out why a certain item becomes a true fad.  Why are jeans that are full of holes so popular?  Why were Furbies and Fidgits so longed for?
    In the mid-1980's, when my oldest daughter, Sarah, was nine or ten years old, we were caught up in the fad of Cabbage Patch Kids.  They were dolls that weren't very realistic or cute yet every little girl seemed to want her very own Cabbage Patch Kid.  Sarah was no exception.
     For Christmas that year that was the only present that she had asked for.   She wanted a blond, curly haired Cabbage Patch kid.  Sarah was never one to demand a toy and even though she would rather play outside than sit around and play with dolls, this was different.  I could tell that she was hoping and counting on getting one for Christmas....  So, I went to the store to find one.  There it was on the shelf....blond, curly hair and all.  I bought it and walked out of the store knowing that my little girl was going to be so very delighted.
    A few days later my mother told me that my sister was making Sarah twin Cabbage Patch dolls.  She had gotten a pattern and they looked almost like the real thing.  Wasn't that sweet of her she asked?
     Of course it was a lovely gesture!  My sister is an amazing seamstress and truthfully is excellent at any craft that she tries.  I was thankful that she cared so much for my daughter and I certainly didn't want to seem ungrateful.  But what to do with the one I had just purchased?  Would Sarah really need three dolls?  I couldn't imagine that she would ever play with that many.
     Sarah would have two "almost real" Cabbage Patch dolls.  After convincing myself that it would be fine, I brought the blond curly haired Cabbage Patch Kid back to the store and went home to get ready for the celebration.
    On Christmas Eve, we opened presents and my sister and my mom both watched in expectation as Sarah opened her gift.  To her credit she allowed only a flicker of disappointment to cross her face as she took her twin dolls out of the box.  As she held them up for all to see they looked almost like the real thing...but they weren't. Sarah tried her best to look both happy and thankful.  Sadly though, the copies did not fulfill her desire for the real thing.
    Looking back, I am not sure why I didn't just go back to the store and repurchase that little doll... I guess maybe that is why so many years later this incident still crosses my mind.
    Too many times in life we try to fill God ordained desires with only copies of the real thing. Copies rarely, if ever. produce the same kind of deep seated pleasure, delight, and fulfillment as their real counterparts.
     Ask yourself which of these you would rather have for your very own...real butter or margarine on fresh corn on the cob; tasty homemade chicken soup or store bought canned soup; a museum grade painting or a dollar store calendar picture;  the tried and true, tested love of a couple happily married for fifty years or the infatuation of a teenage crush.  To be fair, some of these examples are a matter of taste and really not very important in the realm of things but you can get the point.
     "Real" is an adjective that means "not imitation or  artificial".  Some similar words are genuine, authentic, sincere, and true.  When you yearn for what is real, a substitute just isn't adequate.
    In life, we are all created with a deep seated need for the truth that only the Creator of our souls can give us.  That need is at the very core of our beings.  It constantly tries to be heard above the din of everyday life.  It asks questions such as "Why am I here?" and "Who am I?".  That need is at the core of every person's heart whether they acknowledge it or not.
    Too often we try to fill that need with things that are an imitation of the real thing.  In today's hedonistic culture it is easy to spot.   "If it feels good to me, do it", seems to be the current slogan.  The problem is that ultimately, this is a recipe for disaster.
    For instance, if you want a true physical and emotional connection with another person, you have to be willing to go through a lifetime of trials and joys together.  You have to decide together to  put in the work of  understanding and forgiving and encouraging and challenging each other.  The result is true love with a depth of satisfaction that is impossible to achieve in a brief sexual encounter or emotional fling. In the same way, if we truly want to gain peace and joy in the life that we have been given we need to get to know the only One who made us as we are. 
     Many people claim that they "know" God because they have heard a few Bible stories or verses or because they listen to sermons occasionally.  Sometimes they believe they know all about it because they grew up in a Christian home.  Without seeking to know God on their own, they look at the hypocrisy of their families and reject it.  The problem is that they have to continue to search for that thing that will fulfill the inner need of their hearts.
    I have been married to the same man just short of forty seven years.  He is an imperfect, occasionally stubborn, and flawed human being.  We have had a long list of failures, many misunderstandings, and our share of hopeless situations.  So why can I say that I am among the most blessed women in the world and it has been a joy and an honor to be his wife?  It is because I am an imperfect, occasionally stubborn, and flawed human being too.  It is because I have learned to know my husband's heart and have watched him faithfully navigate not only the problems of life but the joys and victories that have far outweighed the hurts we've encountered through the years.  We have true love.  Not fake but real.
    So it is with God.  Even though I have been a Christian for my entire life, I have only begun to scratch the surface of knowing who He is!  God is perfect, patient, and all knowing.  He brings joy, understanding,  and hope to every situation.  So how can I say that I am among the most blessed women in the world and it has been a privilege and an honor to be His servant?  It is because even though I am an imperfect, occasionally stubborn and flawed human being, He has chosen me to be His child!  It is because I have learned (and am continually learning and relearning) to know God's heart and to hear His voice.  I have been the thankful recipient of His presence and His faithfulness as I navigate both the problems and the joys of my life.  God has given me true love.  Not fake but real.  He satisfies that deep longing of my soul.
 
                                                        Have a good day!  Love, Sue

Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me."  John 14:6

When I use the word "God", I mean God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit.  The amazing thing about God, the Three in One, is that He holds out the offer of being His child to everyone everywhere!  You have only to ask and to seek.

 
 
 

   
   

Dirk's Boards

    In the mid 1990's the youth pastor of our church gave a very memorable illustration to show how a small sin in our lives can become a huge problem unless we deal with it while it is still comparably small.
    He walked up to the front of our church with two very long wooden two by fours that were about 8 feet long or so.    Once there he placed both boards together on two sawhorses.  On one end he placed  a thin book between the two boards so that they were no longer  lying flat against each other.  While the book side was fairly close together, the farther away from the book, the wider those boards became until they formed a very long V shape.
    Pastor Dirk then proceeded to talk about how the book represented our sin.  At first it did not seem to disrupt the two boards too much but as your eyes followed the boards to the other end, they were far, far apart!  His point was that we need to confess our sins and repent from them when they happen.  If we wait to deal with each sin that we commit,  the initial problem can become  greatly exaggerated and  what started out small can become, with time, very big.
    But, as believers in the One True God we have good news!!!

"If we claim that we're free of sin, we're only fooling ourselves.  A claim like that is errant nonsense.  On the other hand, if we admit our sins --- make a clean breast of them--- He (the Lord) won't let us down; He'll be true to Himself.  He'll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing. 1 John 1:8-9
 
                                                            Have a good day!  Love, Sue