Dutch Weather, Monster Trees, and Small Miracles.

Location of the Monster Tree

I like living in Holland. I wasn't sure at first, but the place has grown on me, a bit like a fungus. We have a house with plenty of space, a private(ish) back garden, and our neighbours have finally thawed to the "Engelse"  and now greet us almost every time they see us. The weather, however, is another matter.

I cycle to and from work on my trusty Batavus every working day, and so I get to experience the weather close-up and personal. I recently heard a comedian ask why anyone would possibly want to know the wind speed when watching a weather forecast. Because it makes a huge difference to people like me, that's why.

So, thanks to the cancellation of summer this year, the weather has gone from a cold winter to a not-so-cold version of winter. As I wrte this, the sky is overcast and the ground is still wet from the rain that seems determined to continue falling until next year. In August we had strong winds to go along with the driving rain. On the last Friday of that month, the monster tree in our back garden blew down.

I call it a monster tree because it grows very quickly and seems set on devouring the house. Also, it doesn't have a normal trunk like most trees. It has one of those twisting, distorted trunks up to about waist height, after which it splits off into many smaller trunks. It looks like Medusa's head, or that snake that Jason and the Argonauts tied to kill but which sprouted two new heads every time they chopped one off.

In its attempt to devour our house, the monster tree sprouted four smaller trunks, each going in a different direction. Two were headed for the house itself, another for the industrial greenhouse that forms the back wall of our garden, and the third towards the huge water tank sitting next to the factory which forms the side wall to our property. So we've got an overgrown monster tree sitting slap bang in the middle of a residence, a greenhouse, and a water tank. Cue gale-force winds and you've got a disaster itching to happen.

As is so often the way with imminent disasters, I was planning to avert said event by doing some heavy trimming the following weekend. Normally, my landlord would do this, but he seems to have forgotten we actually live there. I was planning to haul out the secateurs on Saturday. The tree blew down on Friday.

I say it blew down, but "down" is not the best word to describe what the monster tree did. It splintered in multiple directions like some grotesque house of cards, splitting right down to the base of the supporting trunk. My wife sent me a Google Chat message at work to say the tree had fallen and was leaning dangerously against the house, although thankfully nothing was damaged--yet. She said my son was busy trimming the branches that were leaning heavily against the windows at the back of the house. She took a photograph from inside and it looked as though the windows were about to break.

When I arrived home the garden was strewn with branches. I took a quick look at the trunk and saw where it had split. At the time I noticed that the base trunk was split in two, right down to the soil. One half was leaning toward the water tank. The second was pointing at our house. I can see the split in my mind very clearly now. It had a very distinct shape with one trunk leaning back towards the water tank and the other sort of curled around towards the house.

We decided it would be best to leave the rest until the morning as it was still raining heavily. Next morning the wind had died down and the greenhouse and water tank were still intact. We did our weekly shop and loaded the fridge. My son and I set about removing the biggest branches threatening the water tank. My wife said she wanted to defrost the freezer because ice was stopping her from closing the door. She asked to borrow a chisel and hammer. My words as I handed her the tools were: "Please be careful."

About ten minutes later, she appeared with the chisel and hammer in hand and said there was a hissing sound coming from the back of the freezer. The general concensus was that this was not good. A quick check on Google confirmed that the coolant was leaking and that the only realistic option was a new fridge. I grabbed the car keys and took my son in to town to visit the local electrical store. It was at this point the small miracles started to happen.

Small miracle #1: The shop assistant stated quite clearly that they do not deliver on Saturday and they could only get it to us by Tuesday. I said that we had a week's worth of shopping sitting on the kitchen floor. He said they couldn't deliver. My son asked him if there was no way they could get it to us. The assistant made a phone call and said it might be possible because someone was doing repairs in our area but had only limited room in his van. So, we had to choose one of the smaller models and delivery was possible. Our shopping would be saved.

Small miracle #2: The model we chose was about my height. I remember in the shop that it was standing on a plinth about two inches off the ground and the top of the fridge was slightly above the top of my head. Later that afternoon when we took delivery, the fridge was flat on the ground and a good four inches above my head. I double-checked the receipt and it was the same model we had selected in the shop. So, somehow, we ended up with a bigger fridge with the same model number, and there was room in the van. I later found out that my daughter had prayed for that exact thing.

Small miracle #3: With the new fridge safely installed, my son and I resumed trimming the tree. As we worked, however, I realised that the tree looked different somehow. Instead of one split in the trunk, there were now two. On Friday evening I remember there being two trunks at soil level. One was leaning towards the water tank and the other towards the house. Now there was a third trunk in front of the other two, leaning dangerously towards the greenhouse. I hadn't noticed it that morning because I was preoccupied with the bit threatening the house but, as I looked at it, there it was, clear as day, blocking the two I had seen the night before. I asked my wife and kids and they said they only remembered seeing just the two trunks. I asked my wife if she had taken a photograph of the trunk when it first split, but she said she had wanted to but did not because of the rain. So at some point between the tree falling down and Saturday morning, a third portion of the tree had mysteriously vanished. We suspect God took it out of the picture to avoid a disaster with the greenhouse. Indeed, while removing it, we had to use ropes to stop it smashing into the glass structure. I can imagine that a strong gust of wind on Friday night would have easily sent that part of the tree crashing down.

Small miracle #4: By Saturday afternoon the garden was swimming in tree branches, so much so that we couldn't see any lawn at all, and we still had a lot more of the tree to chop down. The landlord arrived to cut the front lawn but didn't venture into the back. We could have asked him to clear the branches but we decided to save him the trouble and do it ourselves. I guessed it would take a good four weekends to clear, but we would manage. On Tuesday, the landlord arrived with a chainsaw, a tractor, and a friend. and proceeded to finish the job for us. When I got home that night the garden was clear and, thanks to the trimming done by the landlord, we now have a bigger garden and much more light coming into the house.

In my pre-Christian days I would have taken these events as mere chance occurences, or mistakes, or a dodgy memory. More accurately, I would have seen only the negative aspects: a broken tree, a broken fridge, an unwanted expense. Now what I see is God intervening in what could have been a very bad weekend, and turning it right around into something postive.

The Global Village

They say the world is shrinking. Sometimes it certainly seems that way. Technology has reached the point where it allows us to communicate across time and space like never before. For example, in the Firefox browser you can use an add-on called FoxClocks. It sits in a bar along the bottom of your browser window and can display the current date and time of as many time zones as you like. I have US Pacific, US Mountain, US Central, US Eastern, the UK, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Victoria Australia. The reason I have so many clocks is because I have to communicate regularly with people in all these places. I also have a watch on my wrist for emergencies.

Communication technology has come a long way since the smoke signals of North America, the bullroarer of the Australian Aborigines, and the talking drums of Africa. We can now hold simultaneous conversations with multiple people from all corners of the earth, the only obstacle being the need for sleep. Just this weekend I helped Grace do a final check of Splashdown's upcoming short story anthology. We were able to exchange documents back and forth almost instantaneously. Up until not so long ago, that sort of thing would have been impossible.

The Internet has created the "Global Village" which sounds cozy from the inside. Unfortunately, it is a village to which not everyone has access. While we enjoy chatting, texting, and tweeting, there are people out there whose only concern is finding their next meal. Sometimes it is easy to forget just how privileged we are. This weekend I read the news headlines and my heart almost broke. The main story was about how East Africa is being ravaged by the worst drought in sixty years. Somalia is worst-hit and the UN estimates there are ten million people in that region at risk of starvation. Another story covered the shooting in Norway in which an estimated ninety-six people lost their lives. A third story was about a talented British singer who was found dead at her home on Saturday after a long battle with drug and alcohol addiction.

All of which brought home to me how much the world desperately needs the healing power of Jesus. Without Him, we are at the mercy of all that is bad in the world. Without Him, we are doomed. Scientists may try to tell us that we can build a perfect world, but they are deluded. In one weekend, a woman with everything the world has to offer lost her battle with addiction, an apparently ordinary man decided to kill as many people as he could, and the Horn of Africa stands on the brink of starvation. If this is the best we can do, then we are in deep trouble.

As Christian writers spread across the globe, we are perfectly positioned to help spread the word that there is a solution to this world's problems; that there is a peace that fame and fortune cannot bring; that there is a love that can make the angriest man lay down his guns; and that God's mercy makes us all brothers and sisters in Him and that no-one should go hungry.

We have the technology at our fingertips to see our stories reach the farthest corners of the globe. My prayer is that we write for God's glory, and that our words might help nudge the world a little closer to Christ. Because there is no higher calling.

DEVOTION: The Foundation of Doubt

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. (2 Tim. 2:15)

“Because the Bible says so” is the least sufficient reason a Christian can give to a non-Christian. But it's the reason behind all things Christian in the end. For right or for wrong, someone at least thought the Bible said so. And yet, for right or wrong, I often doubt.

It's a frightening topic, somewhat taboo in some circles, functioning as a badge of coolness in others. Both perspectives can be a means of recognizing the value of trusting even when we don't know. If God is good and God is God, Christians should be able to trust Him whether we have it all figured out or not. On the other hand, our means of expressing blind faith should never shut down the exploration of doubt. Speaking in human terms, doubt is the engine of faith.

How can I say that?

My husband Dave is known for coming up with pithy gems of wisdom. We were talking once about how people decide when to doubt, and he said: “Yeah, doubt has to be based on something.”

Ah, I hear an adventure calling. What could be more fundamental than doubt? Surely doubt is the great reconciler of conflicting certainties, the bottom line. After all, who am I to say the other guy’s truth isn’t true, even if it contradicts ours? That’s so not humble. I could be wrong, you know.

But if I leave it there, then there it ends. All truth is relative. I may deduce nothing, even from a plain reading of the Scriptures, nor may it inform my inferences.

What is truth? (John 18:38)

A famous personage said that one, and shrugged and turned away; and I believe I stand in his shoes before the mob if I join him in his viewpoint, asking to be commanded by popular opinion according to the mood of the moment. There’s a corresponding cliche that the only true humility toward God, or life, or others, is a stance of doubt; yet it doesn’t reference genuine doubt, only a decision not to examine. This is the doubt rejected in Scripture as unbelief.

You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. (Jer. 29:13)

Genuine doubt is based on a fundamental, underlying truth: there are functional means of examining if and when a thing is true, how often that turns out to be the case, and whether the factors involved are consistently correspondent or variable, or somewhere in between. I may not know for sure about a lot of things, but to get through daily life, I constantly infer what's mostly true, true enough, or a pragmatic substitute for certain truth when none can be found.

Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. (Mark 9:24)

If doubts are founded on inference, there is room to doubt our doubts, to question whether they’re founded on correct presuppositions. We can question what we really know about that grey frontier where reliable inference fades from grasp. If we do not doubt our doubts, we are operating on a form of faith — one that stands in opposition to the truths which undergird doubt.

It was out in that grey space, in doubting my unbelieving doubts, that I unexpectedly encountered God.


Cathi-Lyn Dyck is a freelance writer and editor living on the Canadian prairies. She has been eclectically published in the realms of homeschooling, Christian speculative fiction and gardening humor. A former atheist and feminist who came to Christ in 1995, she runs a weekday blog on Christian thinking, life and culture at ScitaScienda.com.

Working Faith

I need to start this post by giving thanks and praise to God Almighty, for His goodness, His love, His grace and mercy. Thank You Lord for considering me. My lips shall praise Your Name forever and ever.

At the end of May I was at a church service where my pastor was talking about an upcoming fast that the entire congregation would be embarking on, starting on the 1st of June. As he said that the fast would be pivotal and mark a turning point in our lives, I experienced a nudge in my spirit; a sense that my life was about to change. I did have one regret though, I was due to fly from London to Denver 2 days later and I didn't think I would be able to go through the entire 21 day fast if I was away from my London church family.

God in His infinite wisdom heard my heart's cry, knowing how vital it was for me to take part in the fast, which by the way, was themed 'The Dynamics of Faith.' I didn't know that my faith was about to be tested as never before in practically every major area of my life. What I would like to share here today are some of the lessons I've learnt over the past few weeks about faith. On the surface it may seem that this topic has nothing, or very little to do with writing, but I'd like to submit to you that if we call ourselves people of faith, then faith should be a central theme in our lives and affect everything we do.

Without faith it is impossible to please God. You're probably thinking, "that's obvious, we all know that. It's in the Scriptures!" Yes it is in the Scriptures, but as I've learnt common sense is not so common. Meditating on that verse with the following in mind gives it a deeper meaning: "for whatsoever is not of faith is sin" - Romans 14:23b. Everything we do as Christians must reflect our faith in God. We are not supposed to have a Plan B, for that is indicative of reasoning things out for yourself instead of seeking God for wisdom about the situations you face and trusting His direction, His word and even His silence.


Love and faith are intricately connected. Regardless of your need or pressure you face, hold on to the truth that God loves you. This becomes the anchor for your faith because you know that no matter what happens God will always do right by you; He is always motivated by love for you. The mistake we sometimes make is to think about our works as a basis for receiving from God in times of trouble, but never let the devil take you on the "merit" road. It leads no where. Everything we get from God is as a result of His love and love never fails but merit will.

Growing in love is the key to faith and brings deeper intimacy with God. The more we love Him, the more we trust Him and the more God's power and presence is created in our lives, which then increases the love we have for Him. This makes it easier to obey in things that appear risky because we know that God's instruction is borne out of love. The degree to which you know God is the degree to which you can trust Him.
The consciousness that God is with me gives me boldness in the face of a collapsing world and attracts the anointing. The reality never scares me and I never give up.

Lack of trust is a reflection of the quality of one's love for God and can make a person self protective, i.e feeling the need to have a Plan B.

Everyone will be tested; and probably many times. When you have everything sorted in your life, and all your contingencies are in place, watch out, because you're in the perfect position for a shaking. If your trouble doesn't bring you straight to God, you'll probably stay in if for longer than necessary.

Never let a situation linger. The moment it develops is when you pray and ask God for a solution; for direction. Respond to the situation quickly (by going to God), to "reads" its spiritual significance otherwise it may very well consolidate.

Some final thoughts:
The people who succeed in faith are the people who trust God instead of themselves.

Sometimes things get worse before they get better, but don't get exasperated. Hold fast. Faith is a lonely word. You have to resist all ridicule. To fight doubt, go straight to God. Constantly. You may know that you've been called by God to write but after rejection upon rejection you begin to lose the initial excitement you had, and even begin to doubt your ministry, but don't give up. If God called you, He has equipped you for the journey and He knows how and when He will bring it to manifestation. It's all for His glory anyway, so trust Him. He may not tell you, but the purpose for your writing may be the relationships you develop along the way, and not the publishing of a book.

As writers we must have faith that God will touch lives through us and this should give us a level of expectation and God Himself will honour His name.

Charis (Grace to you...)

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Ufuoma Daniella Ojo is a technical writer, having the time of her faith, working very hard to finish editing her first novel and trusting God for it's subsequent publication.

Angels

Angels are a topic people are fascinated with. Who are they? What do they do? As I recently had a true story published in Adams Media Cup of Comfort Book of Bible Promises about an angelic intervention, I thought I'd share an abbreviated version with you.

There are many misconceptions around as many folk pray to angels, or believe their loved ones become angels when they die. But from the best authority, the Bible, we know they are created beings who worship God. They are given special assignments. And among many other things, they minister to believers by guarding and protecting them. And it's that last, specific duty of theirs that will remain with me forever.

My husband and I were the devotional leaders at a wilderness youth camp. All week long we'd been teaching how we need to trust the Lord in every one of life's challenging situations, using Mark Chapter 11 where Jesus tells us we must have believing faith enough to move mountains.

We set off in the heavily loaded LandRover packed with excited teenagers. That day we went caving in non-tourist caves wearing overalls and emerged in the afternoon covered in gluey mud. Deciding to pitch camp for the night, we drove down closer to the river and cleaned up.

The next day the young people, carrying their water bottles, were to hike up the mountain on the trail to rejoin the road above. My husband and I, a girl with a sprained ankle, and Les, the driver, decided to relax and leave an hour or so later when we'd catch up with the other group.

We finished our tea and were ready to go, but the heavily loaded vehicle would not budge. Its weight had caused it to settle overnight into the soft, grassy ground. After several attempts to start the engine, Les quit so as not to flood it. He said we'd have to push it along so he could clutch-start it. We three softies trying to push that great heavy thing?

Our cell phones were out of range and we felt sick about these young people who might have been stranded if we didn't turn up. How could we have been so naive? Well, we tried and tried, and tried...Nothing! It just sat there, totally immovable. It was time to prove the Lord meant what He said. We prayed earnestly, acknowledging our helplessness and our heavenly Father's might. We asked the Lord for His help as He already knew about our impossible situation and after all, He was in control of our lives.

Feeling slightly foolish, but eager to put our faith to the test, we got behind that stubborn metal mountain again prepared to exert our puny strength to the limit. We yelled at the top of our lungs "Push!" and had barely laid our hands on it when it moved as if we were pushing a child's bicycle! Staring at each other, we laughed as that ponderous vehicle easily coasted along the soft earth, and listened, astonished, as the engine roared to life.

With hearts full of joy, we reached our students and shared what the lord had done. And to this day we remember the impossibility of the situation, and how the Lord spared one of His unseen angels to give us that miraculous push.