Enjoy these selections from the last 90 days of Walter Mouse's weekly "Field Mouse Evangelism" devotions. The devotions are listed in descending order by date with the most recent devotion at the top. Click here if you would like to read the Wending Our Way devotions.
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We were visiting Bill's mom this week. When we arrived, she'd just made herself a cup of herbal tea. We started to chat and she thought she'd left the teabag in long enough, but when she went to drink it, it was awful--way too weak! No flavor at all. It worked out OK, though. She stuck the teabag back in the water again and about five minutes later it tasted fine. It just needed a little more time.
As I was wandering around under Mom's kitchen table searching for crumbs, it came to me that I'm often rushing the cups God sets before me. It's so hard to wait for stuff to happen that I sometimes try to hurry things along before God has finished the brewing process. This can leave me with a weakened version of the blessings He has planned for me.
It's better to wait patiently and give God time to let things fully develop around me.
James 5:7b ...See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop....
Bill and I stopped at a hospital to make a visit a while ago, and wonder of wonders, two elevators became available at the same time. Both were going up, as we were, so it didn't matter which one we took. We hopped on one and soon arrived on our floor.
It seems to be that God occasionally puts us in situations like that-- where we have two possible choices and one's as good as the other. I know Bill has been there. At one point he prayed and prayed about a new job offer but never got a clear leading from the Good Lord. Finally, God seemed to be saying, "I'll use you in whichever place you choose." How freeing! Bill chose to take the new job offer and was happy there for many years.
Sometimes, if we prayerfully consider one of several options and receive no clear understanding of God's will for us, it may be because He's leaving the choice in our hands and will use us wherever we are.
Ecclesiastes 3:6 ...a time to search and a time to give up.
Bill loves crosswords. (I try to help him with them, but I'm not very good at it.) He especially likes the ones that are a bit challenging. He loves it when one clue leads to an answer and a while later, another clue leads to another answer.
He doesn't need to see results all at once. Sometimes he carries a clue around in his head for days, awaiting an inspiration. He doesn't seem to mind the empty spots on the page or the erasures, or mysteriously obscure clues. He just keeps plugging away.
Isn't life like that---full of input and connection, but often equally full of empty spots, start-overs and mysterious silences. Through it all, we know that God is watching over us, and that life, like crosswords, comes together as we live it.
Psalms 121:3 ...he who watches over you will not slumber....
Bill and I stopped for gas this morning, a frightening experience at best! As Bill headed toward the station to pay, he stepped on a huge manhole cover. Nothing unusual there--we've walked on it before, but this time it made the worst racket when Bill's foot hit it. It scared us half to death!! Nothing seemed to be actually wrong, so we just continued on our way.
On the way back to the car, we discovered the cause of the noise. A good-sized stone had found its way onto the manhole cover and rattled loudly whenever someone stepped on it. Now we knew that we could ignore the noise and go on with our day.
Life can be like that, too. Some things can be very noisy without necessarily requiring our response. Once we're sure nothing's actually amiss, we can often ignore some of the noise that crosses our path.
Isaiah 18:4 ...I will remain quiet and will look on from my dwelling place.
A friend of Bill's recently bought an old wooden desk at a yard sale. It was pretty banged up, but was an interesting shape and size, so Bill's friend figured he could repair and refinish it and it'd look pretty good. He ran into problems when he discovered the desk was made of plywood. There was no way to make repairs to any of it. What can you do with broken plywood?! When he tried to refinish it, it discovered that he couldn't remove the old paint completely and when he could remove the old paint, the plywood was still unattractively stained. It was an impossible job all around.
We can feel like that old desk sometimes: broken and damaged beyond repair. Man can't fix that, although we can sometimes help. Our God, however, can transform a life. The Master Carpenter is in the repair business. You can count on Him, no matter what shape you're in!
Philippians 32:20b-21 ...the Lord Jesus Christ ...will transform our lowly bodies....
Several years ago, Bill and I took a winter walk after a particularly cold spell had begun to let up. We'd had brutal cold, followed by snow and sleet, followed by melting and refreezing--it was just a mess out!
Most sidewalks were cleared that day, so we decided to venture out. At one point, we noticed that ice on the blacktop of our driveway was melting from underneath. Interesting! There was a layer of water flowing gently under the top layer of ice.
That's just the way God often works in our lives--from the inside out. Even if someone's outside looks frozen, God may be at work within. We shouldn't count anyone (including ourselves) lost just because of appearances. God is often at work within the human heart.
Hosea 11:8e ... My heart is changed within me....
Last week Bill and I wound up driving behind a dump truck with "Up in Smoke" painted across the back of the truck bed. I have no idea what it meant to the driver, but it made me think of the smoke that trails away when you blow out a candle. It's visible for a short time, then just vanishes.
So it is with our lives: they, too, are visible for a brief period and then they simply disappear. Just as we can hold onto the memory of a candle burning, once we're gone others can hold onto the memories we've created together.
What memories are you creating with the life you've been given?
Psalms 102:3 ...For my days vanish like smoke....
We were at the dentist last week---tra la---and had a bit of a wait for our turn. As were sitting there, a young mother came out of an exam room followed by a preschooler clutching a book. All seemed fine until Mom explained to her young son that the book belonged to the dentist and had to stay there.
The little one put on a very determined look and held the book even tighter. Mom finally had to gently pry it from her little one's grip, and then they left together amid his tears of genuine sadness. We felt sorry for the little guy, but it was kind of heart-warming to see how much he valued that book. Wouldn't it be great if we valued God's word like that--just wanted to carry it around with us all the time, holding it close to our hearts?
Words hidden our hearts can never be pried loose, no matter what or who intervenes. Words in our hearts are protected for eternity. They're with us always.
Psalms 119:11 ...I have hidden your word in my heart....
Bill used to belong to a local charitable organization that didn't actually have an address. The group met at the same place each month and could be reached through its members or via email. They provided a valuable community service, but people couldn't just drive up to a home-base to make a connection. They'd have to hear about the group and search out a contact.
Jesus has also been in the same situation for quite a while now. He has no address, either, so people have to hear about Him from someone else and then seek Him out.
Generally, the things we search for most diligently are those we value most. That's certainly true with Jesus.
Luke 9:58 ...the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.
Bill loves solitaire. He got a hand-held electronic game for Christmas one year. Instead of moving cards around by hand, he can move them with the touch of a button. The only trouble is, sometimes Bill responds faster than the game allows and the cards get jammed. Then he has to slow down and unstick things.
That can happen in our lives, too. If we go rushing headlong into something, we might discover that we're going too fast to be effective. Consequently, we might make mistakes, hurt ourselves, slow things down or make things difficult for others.
Sometimes we just need to slow down enough to let one thing happen at a time. We can start with the most important thing and then keep doing whatever comes next-- and things will usually get done in a workable fashion.
Mark 4:28 ...All by itself the soil produces grain--first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head.
Bill and I ran into the grocery store for a few things the other day. There weren't many people there, so we got to the check-out line pretty quickly. While we were waiting our turn, I became aware of all the noise around us--not from people, but from the environment. The scanners were loudly beeping and booping with several different tones. The mechanical voice from a nearby self-check-out station was telling the whole store what the customer using it bought. Obnoxious music was blaring from the ceilings. A child was crying somewhere and there was the constant crinkle of plastic bags. It all got to be pretty overwhelming after a bit.
All that racket drowned out any quiet thoughts we might have been able to connect with. We were glad to leave the store and find some peace and serenity!
Sometimes, in the rest of life, too, racket surrounds us and we just need to become aware of it and escape, if only for a short time. Whether it's inside us or outside us, noise pollution is stressful, and it helps to get away from it.
Psalms 23:2b ... he leads me beside quiet waters....
Isn't there a song that speaks of The Wild Blue Yonder? Bill was humming it the other day, I think. The Wild Blue Yonder always sounds so welcoming and hopeful; and so clean--a place you'd willingly go where you'd be happy and effective at what you do; a place where you find others who are also happy in doing satisfying things.
But what if your Yonder isn't so blue? What if it's looking kind of gray---or black, even? What if the journey isn't toward joy and success and fulfillment? Sometimes we need to pull inward and tell our concerns and sorrows to the One Who understands, even if we don't. And then we can open our hearts and lives to the resources and people God has placed along our path to accompany us on this step of our journey--for God is always in the Yonder, no matter what color it seems to us.
Psalms 46:10a ...Be still and know that I am God....
We visited Bill's mom the other day. She's a plant-lover. One of her favorite houseplants is an ivy that has green-and-white leaves. It's pretty because it has unusual markings. Recently, it grew two new leaves that were completely white--no green at all. I got to thinking about those leaves as we all had a cup of tea. (Bill's mom likes mice!) Without green coloration, the leaves can't make food for the plant, since it's the chlorophyll that enables plants to make nutrients.
If we neglect prayer, Bible reading, service, prayer and fellowship, we're in danger of becoming like those white leaves. We'll wind up empty and unfed--starving, spiritually, really, if we let it go on long enough.
All living things need food, and as Christians, we're each responsible for feeding our own souls.
Psalms 130:5 ...I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.
Click here to read the Wending Our Way devotions.
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This page was last revised on February 23, 2020 at 7:41 PM.
