I originally penned these words six years ago three months after the fire that destroyed over 500 homes in the Black Forest where we live.

With the holidays upon us and the celebrations they bring, (and with Halloween falling on a Thursday this year), it seemed appropriate to share with you this idea again.

Wish you could have joined us. The food was delicious.

Two neighbors lost their homes in the Black Forest fire. The desire to love well in the midst of this horrendous context was real. But how?

Initiate toward them?

Cry with them?

Offer help?

Throw a Halloween shower in their honor. YES!!!

Charlotte* loved Halloween. It was her favorite holiday and every year she hosted an elaborate bash for her daughters and their friends. Now all the scary decor was ash … swept away in the clean-up … gone … history.

The proverbial light bulb shown brightly. Gather the neighbors and her circle of friends and host a Halloween shower. No costumes, just food, friends, and new Halloween decor for Charlotte.

“That is the loveliest thing anyone has ever done for me”, she responded the morning I phoned to ask if she would be comfortable with the idea.

We planned, invited, prepared. It was fun. It was a huge success.

The night of the shower, I fell asleep with my mouth curved in a smile.

“Love is … kind …”   I Corinthians 13:4.

Mark 4:26-29 comes to mind, four short verses. The parable compares a man scattering seed. Life goes on and the seed sprouts and grows to maturity; there is a harvest. But four seemingly unimportant words jump out, “he knows not how”.

My dreams would not lead me down this path … forest fire … Halloween shower … deepening friendship with a neighbor. I wonder, where will it go from here?

In the Mark passage the seed progresses:
scatters,
sprouts,
grows,
ripens,
harvest.

On my street, my seed is somewhere between scatters and sprouts. I’m praying for growth, ripening, and harvest. I wonder what it will look like. (2019 update — No harvest yet. Now we’re between sprouts and grows.)

What about you … what ideas can you share about planting seeds among neighbors. This October I worked on fertilizing and watering.

“He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows;
he knows not how.”
Mark 4:27

I’m thrilled to introduce you to my friends who live in Scotland. It looks like perhaps Mom Ros is taking this family picture. I sure glad Anna made it in!

We met Phil and Ros last summer when they were visiting the US. Then in May, they hosted us in Scotland. What a wonderful family. Dinner with their family in their home was a highlight.

There was a fourth daughter, Bevan. Until I read Ros’ words (Click the link below), I didn’t know that part of their story.

Ros’ candor and biblical insights touched me deeply. Yes, love can grow even after death.  I think any one who has lived through loss will be ministered to by Ros’ wisdom. Read on …

https://navigators.co.uk/blog/2019/08/19/august-and-everything-after/

 

Last Thursday I posted about Moses’ staff. It was a message to me about a long-term project God wants me to steward. If you haven’t yet, you might want to scroll down and read Take … This Staff first.

This week I’m introducing Elaine and how God used her to help me discern his will concerning something more immediate.

Elaine plopped down next to me on one of the comfortable wooden porch rocking chairs provided by The Wine Country Inn. We were the only two enjoying the view while shaded from the September sun that morning. We’d never met before.

She started the conversation noticing my pen moving across paper left to right as I wrote in my journal.

Are you a writer?
Yes, I responded, my confidence surprising me.
Read me what you just wrote.

Remember, we’d never met before. I didn’t even know her name yet.
I hesitated. Wouldn’t you?

She persisted, politely but persistently.

My words were not particularly personal. So okay.

I read her what I had written, a half page bringing an opportunity before the Lord. The last two sentences I wrote before Elaine came by, But I need to listen to God. I have questions.

Elaine picked up on the word but. A former newspaper owner, she dealt with lots of writers and shared this observation.

“When you write the word ‘but’ it negates what you have written previously.
If you write the word ‘and’, the before and the after have equal value.”

I had written “but”.

God used Elaine to lead me to my decision.

A half page scribbled in my journal and the boldness of a stranger led to discernment on how this opportunity fit into stewarding who God is creating me to be. I said ‘no’ to the opportunity.

“The ear that listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise.”
Proverbs 15:31

 

Copyright, October 2019, Sue Tell

 

Can it be that God helps you understand stewardship with one word — one seemingly inconsequential word?

That is my experience. In this collection of words above do you see staff (to the left and a bit below center)? Staff, the seemingly inconsequential word, takes center stage.

Remember the narrative of Moses in Exodus 3 and 4? Moses, a shepherd, is on Mount Sinai tending to the  sheep of his father-in-law. Suddenly this ordinary day turns into something totally unexpected: an angel with a message from God, a burning bush, holy ground, and when God knew he had Moses’ attention an affirmation of his identity. “I am the God or your father,” (3:6)

Then the reason for the visit, God to Moses: “Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” (3:10) Quite the daunting task for an everyday shepherd!

And Moses was daunted … and scared … and feeling mighty insecure. Excuses, questions, and pleas came fast. “Who am I that I should go …” (3:11) If I come to the people of Israel and they challenge me, who do I say you (God) are? (3:13) “They will not believe me or listen to my voice,”  (4:1) “I am not eloquent,” (4:10) “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” (4:13)

How might you feel if God tasked you with a seemingly impossible job?

I’m identifying with Moses.

I also love God’s meeting Moses where he is and responding to each excuse. “He (God) said, “But I will be with you,”” (3:12) “God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM… This is my name forever,” (3:14, 15) I AM, or Yahweh is also a clear reminder of God’s promises to his people and of his help for them to fulfill their calling. (ESV Study Bible notes)

Then the staff, that essential piece of equipment for a shepherd, becomes one of the pictures God uses to communicate to Moses about his they will not believe me excuse. God asks for the staff and instructs Moses to throw it on the ground. It turns into a snake and Moses runs. I would too. God’s next instruction is even scarier, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail” (4:4) Moses obeys and the snake becomes a staff once again.

After two additional convincing pictures of God’s ability, God challenges Moses’ other excuses. The I am not eloquent, “Who has made man’s mouth? I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” (4:11, 12) Please send someone else, “Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I will be with your mouth and with his mouth and will teach you both what to do.” (4:14, 15)

Back to the staff.

After Aaron enters the picture, God says, “And take in your hand this staff,” (4:17, italics mine) This staff.  A staff is an essential tool of Moses’ trade; this staff is the very staff God is using to demonstrate his power.  Now God is highlighting it again. Just a few verses later Moses called this staff, the staff of God! (4:20) Moses is now understanding.

As I ponder, what does stewardship look like at this point in my journey, questions come to my mind too.

What is that essential tool of my trade as a writer that God wants to use to catch my attention?
Am I listening or am I making excuses?
Who are my Aarons?
Will I see my ‘staffs’ as the very thing God has provided for the tasks he has for me?

What about you? How might you answer the questions God has brought to my attention?

“And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you
will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
Philippians 1:6

 

 

 

Reading backwards not because of dyslexia.
Reading backwards in my journals to discern the voice of God.
Reading backwards to find the path of life.
Reading backwards to know the good, acceptable, perfect will of God.
Reading backwards is teaching me about stewardship.

 

Stewardship: the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care.
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary

“… I am still entrusted with a stewardship.”
Paul, I Corinthians 9:17

Stewardship: caring for a God-given trust. (my definition)
“The church of which I became a minister
according to the stewardship from God
that was given to me for you,
to make the word of God fully known,”
Colossians 1:25
(This is the scripture I’ve been praying for Echoes of Grace since its inception in 2010.)

Some things don’t change:

God’s purpose for me wrapped in His love.
God keeps the responsibility in his court.

“The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever.”
Psalm 138:8

Some things don’t change; however, applications morph.

My God-given desires remain the same; living them out is morphing.

“Delight yourself in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Psalm 37:4

Some things do change.

Capacity.
Current realities.
The best path.

“Behold, I am doing a new thing;
now it springs forth,
do you not perceive it?”
Isaiah 43:19

I’ve been pondering: What does stewardship look like at this juncture in my journey? Answers are emerging; anticipation is growing.

“… guard what God has entrusted to you …”
I Timothy 6:20 NLT

“… let God transform you into a new person
by changing the way you think.
Then you will learn to know God’s will for you,
which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
Romans 12:2 NLT

The stewardship story continues. Part 2 — next week, Take This Staff.

Part 3 — the following week, But I Said “But”.

Two Questions:

Have you signed up to follow Echoes of Grace? If not, please do and you’ll never miss a post.
Have you been ministered to by these words? If so, please pass them on to your friends.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When has love invaded you? Or, when have you invaded the life of another with your love?

Sherry invaded us with her love last month. It wasn’t her words — I don’t even remember them — but instead her actions. There she was standing in my kitchen, groceries in hand, pouring out love. She  had texted, I’m at the grocery store. Is there anything you need?

My husband had been released from the hospital. I was the healthy one — but still exhausted from the ordeal of the past several days. I prayed, God, would you nudge someone to bring us dinner tonight, please?

She didn’t bring dinner; she provided the makings. A tomato, head of lettuce, and bacon. (I had the bread.) That was the need. Sherry and her high-school-aged son just showed up. Sherry’s attention to God and their presence in my kitchen invaded our home with love.

They were God’s gracious answer to my prayer.

I don’t have words; I can just offer a hug.
I’m not a good cook; I can just offer a gift card.
Babysitting is not me; I can just offer to take care of your dog.
I live 1,000 miles away; I could just buy you a new skirt and mail it out.**
I don’t __________; I can just ____________.***

Just invading with love.

“The beauty of offering specific help … is that we get to help within our gifting.” Just Show Up, p. 38.

“Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.”
Simone Weil

Will I allow the love of Christ to compel me (II Corinthians 5:14) as Sherry allowed that day last month?

Another friend is struggling with serious cancer. I appreciate that she is keeping us updated with her journey and her prayer requests. I see her from a distance in church some Sundays. I don’t offer a hug. She asked that we give her space. Sometimes being present, and giving attention, is just  not showing up. I do pray.

Because she asked, I don’t physically show up; I just offer my prayers, and sometimes text.

“And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.”
Matthew 10:42, ESV
“Give a cool cup of water to someone who is thirsty, for instance.
The smallest act of giving or receiving makes you a true apprentice.”
Matthew 10:42, The Message

**This is the skirt Mary bought for me 4 years ago when I broke my leg. I dubbed it my little black skirt because I’ve worn it so many times. Thank you again, Mary for just doing what you could do from 1,000 miles away.

*** In different situations, at different times, Bill and I have been the recipient of all of these just offers. Everyone was just what we needed.

Just Show Up, by Kara Tippetts and Jill Lynn Buteyn is available on Amazon. Currently the audible book is free. https://smile.amazon.com/s?k=just+show+up+kara+tippetts&crid=IOKR6XY8L7FX&sprefix=Just+Show+Up%2Caps%2C657&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_5_12

 

 

What have the past six months been like for you? For Bill and me, it was like jumping into the deep end of the pool.

There were dream-come-true travels mixed with incredible hards. There were times of pouring out my heart to God; and times of bending my ear to listen for His voice. But for sure, it has not been the summer we expected, nor the summer Bill and I planned.

In the midst of our deep-end summer, questions proliferated. From the pre-schoolers to the nonagenarians, we were all in the deep end. God allowed us to learn from the questions of a child, our precious GRAND, Ezra.

Ezra’s maternal grandpa died in a small plane crash in June. I love Ezra’s expression as he asks his questions and listens trustingly for the answers.

Ezra bravely voiced his questions.
His questions were to understand, not challenge.
His questions were accepting of his now reality.
His questions were child-like.

“When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child.”
I Corinthians 13:11

Ezra modeled child-like deep-end questions and trusted the wisdom of his Grandpa Tell and the other adults surrounding him.

But describing us older ones, “For now we see in a mirror dimly … Now I know in part;”
I Corinthians 13:12

We adults don’t like the dim mirror and the partial knowledge. We go to the hard questions, the why questions wanting to make sense of the deep end.

RC Sproul once posed this rhetorical question:

Do you think you know better than God
what love looks like?

Of course not! God is love and loving is living out of his character, I say.

“And every fear shatters, breaks away,
when it turns to face the relentless, abundant love
that will not be stopped by anything.”
Ann Voskamp, The Way of Abundance

But sometimes my deep-end, unspoken questions challenge my spoken words.

Resting in the truth of I Corinthians 13:13 helps me to breathe in the deep end. “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

What about you?
What helps you believe God’s definition of love when you find yourself in the deep end?

“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.”
Romans 8:16

I want my default to be becoming who I am: God’s child!

 

If you haven’t already, please sign up to follow Echoes of Grace. All the followers receive a personal devotional note with a direct link to the blog each week.

Have these words ministered to you? If so, please pass them on to your friends; they will probably minister to them as well.

Hello and Welcome back to Echoes of Grace.

I’m so glad you stopped by. I have missed you and I’m looking forward to re-connecting each Thursday.

This week, I want to share with you the words I penned in my journal early last month about still bearing spiritual fruit. I hope they are as inviting to you as they were to me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I sat in my zero-gravity chair on the top of the hill, the shade of the evergreens and the warm breeze protecting me from the summer sun. Our cabin behind me; Lexie (our dog) lying at my back enjoying her morning nap; my view the quiet woods that surround our cabin, God’s creation.

My journal lay open on my lap, and my pen ready and available on top of the empty page. The quiet was almost deafening. Ahhhhh, rest, sabbath.

It was a Sunday morning, but really the day of the week was inconsequential. There was nothing else I was supposed to be doing. Sitting, being, enjoying the presence of God.

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”
Exodus 20:8

This indeed was a holy time.

Even the questions I’d been pondering over the summer were absent that morning.

God was indeed present. Although it wasn’t green pastures and still waters, he was restoring my soul. He was with me, shepherding me, comforting me, whispering to me, anointing me. His goodness and mercy were real.

A picture of God’s promise that morning: the mature pine trees anchored in the soil beneath them still bearing fruit in their old age. I rested with that truth.

“The righteous flourish … planted in the house of the LORD;
They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green,
to declare that the LORD is upright; he is my rock
and there is no unrighteousness in him.”
Psalm 92:12-15 (italics mine)

Two Importants:

When you sign up to follow Echoes of Grace, I also send you a brief devotional note with the link to the blog. You’ll always know when a new post is up. Or email me, sue@suetell.com and I’ll sign you up.

And if this has ministered to you, please share it with your friends; I bet it will encourage them as well.

 

 

 

My sister texted the day of Stan’s visitation, “Hope the family finds peace and hope in the service.” Hope and peace in the midst of the tragedy of Stan’s sudden death. Really?

My favorite verse on hope immediately came to mind,

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing,
so that by the power of the Holy Spirit, you may abound in hope.”
Romans 15:13

Three BIG words: hope, peace, and joy.

Hope – YES!

I’m so thankful for the hope of heaven. C.S. Lewis said, “If you live for the next world (heaven), you get this one (earth) in the deal; but if you live only for this world, you lose them both.”

Stan’s son Andrew referred to this quotation in his words at the memorial service.

Stan was a man who lived for heaven; he knew the love of Jesus and it was reflected in his life. As Andrew mentioned he wasn’t interested in a legacy but in planting those tiny eternal mustard seeds that would grow into large trees providing a home and rest for many birds.

“It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown
it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree,
so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”
Matthew 13:32

As a husband, as a father and grand-father, as a friend, and as a doctor, the seeds that Stan planted have taken root and grown. Many are resting in that legacy that Stan never set out to leave. I’m so thankful to have called him friend.

And hope leads to peace.

Peace – YES!

“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith,
we have peace with God …”
Romans 5:1

Our peace rests in God, not in the circumstances of our lives. It is a peace beyond which the world can offer.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives do I give to you.
Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
John 14:27

That familiar scripture I memorized years ago leaves me with an option: am I willing in the midst of my tears to trust its truth?

J.R.R. Tolkien, decidedly the greatest author of the twentieth century said through his character Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings, “There are sorrows in this world so great that their tears are never wiped away in this life.”

But Joy???

I am thankful for the hope of heaven. I am thankful for the peace God offers. But  joy? Stan’s large extended family is in shock. They are hurting greatly. Bill and I are hurting. Stan’s death was a tragedy – that word I understand, but joy?

Yet joy met us.

Psalm 16:11 has long been another favorite. This chalkboard was prominently displayed at the visitation and funeral.  “In your presence there is fullness of joy;” That’s Stan’s reality– and our hope.

As Andrew recounted for us many of the things his father loved, he concluded with this thought, “In the waves of grief and tears there is a joy over our father’s life.”

At the graveside service which our son Jeff (Stan’s son-in-law) officiated, he too spoke of joy. “We are committing Stan’s body to the ground for a time … we do this in profound sorrow, and yet, there is joy. For to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”

And in the words of the songs we sang joy was present.

I can’t explain it. But something had changed as we walked back through the woods leaving Stan’s body in his grave. There was an okay-ness.

We had been reminded of our hope as believers.
We were experiencing peace we couldn’t explain.
And yes, there was a quiet joy.

Memories continue flooding back.
Tears continue to flow.
Dreams testify to our new reality.
Hope, peace, and joy offer truth and comfort.

Things I loved about Stan …

Stan sang Happy Birthday to every baby he delivered.  His daughter Aubrey (our daughter-in-love) is carrying on this legacy.

 

 

 

 

Stan took many mission trips with Volunteers in Medical Missions. In this picture he’s closely supervising his daughter and soon-to-be doctor. I’m very thankful that Jeff was able to also accompany them. His aptitude in speaking and reading Spanish was a great asset.

 

 

 

Stan took Bill and me up in his first Cessna. We flew over Lake Keowee. Yes, I was scared at first.

 

 

 

 

 

Stan loved to fly above the clouds to watch the sun rise.

 

 

 

Stan, and Carol too, knew how to do friendship. And I look forward to continuing to build our friendship with Carol. This was snapped in Greenville, SC, October 2017.

 

 

 

And one more memory. This conversation happened at the Visitation.

“Grandpa [Tell], where are Papa Stan’s bones?” Ezra, 4 1/2 years old.

 

 

 

 

At Stan’s request, Untitled Hymn (Come to Jesus) was sung at his Memorial Service. You can listen to it here.

And this is the song Andrew, Aubrey, Austin, Abram, and Elise (Austin’s wife) sang at the graveside service, the picture above.

Dr. Stan Rampey
Husband to Carol; father to Andrew, Aubrey, Austin, & Abram.
Grandfather to 10 precious littles.
Greatly loved by his large extended family and many, many friends including Bill and me.
October 18, 1951 – June 12, 2019

 

Echoes of Grace remains on a semi-sabbatical for a few more weeks and plans to return, Thursday, September 12! Mark your calendars.

 

 

Last week at my eye appointment an older couple with a Mastiff “puppy” their service dog in training, shared the waiting room with me. He was kind of the size of a horse and definitely very puppy-ish. The frustrated owner ordered his pup over and over and over in a rather loud voice, settle!

That was the first of four times in the next three days that I heard the word settle. Hmmm, sometimes God speaks with a rather loud voice.

As a verb, one of the definitions of settle is to make quiet or orderly or calm; to come to rest; when speaking of an animal, to impregnate (to create new life). Merriam Webster Dictionary, parentheses mine.

Six years ago I was asking the question, what does it look like to continue to mature spiritually, to bear fruit in old age. (I wasn’t there yet, I just wanted to be prepared.)

A few months ago, the question morphed to, what does stewardship look like at this stage of my life. (Old age was a tad closer – still not there yet.)

Six years ago I was looking for something to fan my spiritual growth. Perhaps seminary; perhaps a spiritual director certificate; perhaps _____? Interesting – God’s answer was not something that was on my radar, God brought his answer to me.

Now there is a different trajectory to my question. God is not leading to another program; I’m thinking stewardship is settling into who God created me to be.

As I’ve been pondering my question, I’ve also been reading Emily P. Freeman’s newest book, The Next Right Thing. (Highly recommended even if you’re not looking for a ‘next’.) This is the second place the word settle popped up. (The other times came in conversations with others.)

“What if your next right thing is to settle in
right where you are
and come back home to yourself?”
p. 192, italics mine

 

Summer is just a week old. Summer is the time Bill and I enjoy many quiet days at our Sanctuary, our small cabin tucked in the Wet Mountains of Colorado.

God’s message to me is Sue, settle. Be where you are. For this summer, listen for my love, don’t ponder the next.

 

For now, stewardship is
settling into the gift of summer,
the gift of white space,
the gift of rest.

I’m reminded of Psalm 32:9, “Be not like a horse or a mule (or an untrained Mastiff puppy), without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you.” Interestingly, God’s word in the previous verse, “I will instruct you and teach you … I will counsel you …”

“Long before he laid down the earth’s foundations,
he had us in mind,
had settled on us as the focus of his love …”
Ephesians 1:4, The Message Translation

Settle is an application of my word for 2019, secure.

Echoes of Grace continues on a semi-sabbatical until fall when I look forward to connecting with you regularly again.