Working with one hand

A shovel in one hand, a defense in the other: Armed with an umbrella in my left hand, and a camping shovel in my right, battled the rain. It came down in buckets which is why I was out there, one tent was on one side of the campsite, the other tent was on the other side, but the rain came down the hill, crossed the road, and drained all across the campsite. The water was pooling up on the uphill side of the tents. It was only a matter of time, before my girls were sleeping in water. I trenched around the tents, but it was much like New Orleans during Katrina, there was so much water the trench was full and levees couldn't hold back the water very well. I trenched again, and again, I was soaked, but the girls slept on in the tents. I worked at it for a long time. When I was done, my hand wouldn't open up. It had gripped the shovel so firmly, it was nearly frozen in place.
It reminded me of Nehemiah rebuilding Jerusalem. The people were under the threat of attack. He armed the workers, a sword in one hand and a trowel in the other to keep rebuilding the wall.

Nehemiah 4:16-18
"From that day on, half of my men did the work, while the other half were equipped with spears, shields, bows and armor. The officers posted themselves behind all the people of Judah who were building the wall. Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other, and each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked. But the man who sounded the trumpet stayed with me."

That's hard work, using only one hand just to scratch a ditch in some hard packed sand, they were carrying boulders and rock and mortar! This was not a human effort, only God could have sustained the work one handed. For He is able His strong arm is our shield and our refuge in a time of need.

II Samuel 23:9-10 (NIV)
"Next to him was Eleazar son of Dodai the Ahohite. As one of the three mighty men, he was with David when they taunted the Philistines gathered at Pas Dammim for battle. Then the men of Israel retreated, but he stood his ground and struck down the Philistines till his hand grew tired and froze to the sword. The LORD brought about a great victory that day. The troops returned to Eleazar, but only to strip the dead."

My hand didn't save many, or a whole field of grain, but it saved three girls from sleeping in water (and myself).
When your strength gives out, God's strength begins.

Unfocused Eyes

I was holding our new little Gwen, (7 lbs 11.5 oz, 20 inches) She finally opened her eyes so we could see more than a slit. She was searching for my voice, Dad was somewhere out there, just beyond sight. It is an interesting fact that babies can only focus their eyes a few inches out.
Here she was searching for the voice of her father, who loves her and will care for her, more than any other man in her life. I have her matching ID bracelet. Only her parents can access her and take her from the hospital. If anyone tries, the whole floor gets locked down! The elevators stop working!
There's only one relationship that has more love, more safety, and more security that than: God as our heavenly father loves us so much that no one can take us from His hand. His hand never grows tired or weak, and nothing has the power to snatch us away.
As gazed into her eyes of slate blue gray, she wanted to see me, she wanted to know who loved her so much, it hurt. Do I want to see God like that, knowing that He's there and loves me, holds me and cares about everything about my life. I can't focus on Him, because I can't see Him.
Do my spiritual eyes improve as I grow? Yes, but I'm myopic. Myopia which is the noun from which we get the adjective is defined by Miriam-Webster's as 1 : a condition in which the visual images come to a focus in front of the retina of the eye resulting especially in defective vision of distant objects 2 : a lack of foresight or discernment : a narrow view of something.
I'll admit it, I am. God take away my myopia and focus my eyes on You.

Salt and Light

It says in Matthew 5:13-16
13"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

14"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

We are to be the salt. I heard from a man who had been in the salt mines that special glasses were used to protect the eyes. I pondered over this and came to these conclusions:

• Salt is reflective and it cleaves(breaks) in regular and flat planes, which are highly reflective. Our eyes could be damaged by the bright reflection from it. This is prevalent on the salt flats around the world.
• Salt can cause double vision. As seen in the picture, it can blur or double the vision and it if is reflecting the light and doubles it, twice the light reflection.
• Salt can irritate the eyes, by it's drying properties it can absorb water from its surroundings.
• Salt mines are actually very clean and sanitary, even temperature all year round, even humidity and easy to light for mining the salt.
  

When Jesus said we are to be the salt and light of the world, we are to have certain attributes that should affect our surroundings:

• We are to reflect the light of Christ. Do we have a good reflection? Or are there imperfections that hinder the reflection?
• We are to be the feet and hands of Christ. Are we seen as a "ghost" image of Christ? A double exposure?
• We are to change our surroundings. Do we affect the world around us?
• We are to be self-controlled. Are we even-tempered? Not easily angered? Consistent in our day to day lives?

Are you reflecting and refracting Christ's light?