Acres of Diamonds

I recently was taken back by the beauty of a decorative cabbage plant growing in my backyard. I chuckled as I thought about all the travel plans cancelled this year due to the coronavirus; only to find such beauty in my own yard. I thought about the book “Acres of Diamonds” by Russell H. Conwell, written over a century ago which chronicles a wealthy and contented man who had heard about diamonds and their value. He sold his farm and took off to foreign lands in search of diamonds. He did not find any, lost his wealth, and died a pauper. Ironically, the buyer of his farm discovered diamonds, acres of diamonds, on the newly acquired farm.

Even though we dream of far away places to find fortune, love, happiness, and contentment, all those dreams are often available right where we are.

            Jesus’s parable of the prodigal son is recorded in Luke 15. One son took his family inheritance, went to far-away places seeking happiness. After squandering all of the money, he came home and was welcomed back by his dad. Although many lessons can be derived from this story, one is that what he was seeking was available at home the entire time, he just did not appreciate it.

            There are indeed “Acres if Diamonds” in our own backyards if we will only stop, look, and thank God for all our blessings.

            I Found Him…in a beautiful cabbage plant in my own backyard.

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I Found Him -Bricks

A pile of bricks, haphazardly thrown together, does not serve any real purpose. A single brick by itself offers little. When they are stacked together, however, in an overlapping pattern, joined with mortar, each brick plays a vital role in building a structure that can last generations. No two bricks are exactly alike, but each is important.

We too are stronger together. Just as one brick is supported by those below, we are supported by others who hold us up when we feel like crumbling. Ecclesiastes 9-12 (NIV) teaches: “Two are better than one…If either of them falls down, one can help the other up…Also, if two lie down together they will keep warm…A cord of three strands is not quickly broken”.

Life is tough. We face challenges: the coronavirus, political divide, friends and family are suffering and dying, people are out of work. Church attendance is dwindling (even before Covid) at a time when we need the strength and support of a strong faith community more than ever. So, what do we do? Be a brick that supports another one. Be a friend. Reach out to family. Reach out to strangers. Encourage others. Together we are stronger.

The mortar that holds us together is our shared love for our Lord Jesus Christ. As written in Romans 12:5 (NIV) “so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others”.

Be a brick!

I Found Him…in a pile of deserted bricks.

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I Found Him-Southport Pier

 Lights illuminate a fishing pier in the predawn hours giving fishermen a clear path to their fishing destination. It reveals to them any obstacles in the way, allowing for a safe walk on the pier. When Jesus walked on Earth, He proclaimed that…

 

Lights illuminate a fishing pier in the predawn hours giving fishermen a clear path to their fishing destination. It reveals to them any obstacles in the way, allowing for a safe walk on the pier.

When Jesus walked on Earth, He proclaimed that He was indeed the “light of the world” (John 8:12 NIV) and that “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life”. He said this as an indirect way of informing them that He was deity.

John explains in  John 3:19-21 (NIV) “ …Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed”. , John writes in 1 John 1:5 “…God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all”. Light represents what is good, true, and holy and darkness represents what is evil.

Our challenge is to walk in the light where we can see and not fall over devil-set traps in darkness. Just as the lights on this pier show us the way, Jesus is our light 24/7. He shines the light of love and kindness on our path. Avoid the dark trails where the devil lurks and follow the brightly lit one, praising God every step of the way.

I Found Him…walking on a coastal fishing pier, guided by the brightly shining lights.

I Found Him...Shrimp Graders

I had the honor of meeting some hard-working people as they graded shrimp fresh off a trawler. They stand on a concrete floor and separate shrimp by size for hours. I left that place smiling due to these amazing people, laughing and accepting a stra…

I had the honor of meeting some hard-working people as they graded shrimp fresh off a trawler. They stand on a concrete floor and separate shrimp by size for hours. I left that place smiling due to these amazing people, laughing and accepting a stranger with a camera.

In reminiscing this uplifting day, I am reminded of the scripture from Ecclesiastes 5:18 & 20 (NIV): “This is what I have observed to be good: that it is appropriate for a person to eat, to drink and to find satisfaction in their toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given them—for this is their lot. …They seldom reflect on the days of their life, because God keeps them occupied with gladness of heart.”

Many folks are struggling: health challenges, work issues, relationship problems, depression, addiction, hunger, and more. Take comfort-- there is an answer. There is hope. It boils down to attitude. Do we decide to wallow in our miseries or to have a happy heart? Help awaits those who ask—God Almighty. Know that peace and joy is yours when you truly accept Jesus.

The lyrics from A. Walker’s old hymn seem appropriate: “Sometimes, though my way, it gets so dreary, dark and cold…But I can just go to God in prayer. I know, I can find Him there to whisper hey, hey ,hey, hey sweet peace my soul”.

I Found Him…with smiling faces in a shrimp processing facility.

I Found Him--Mast Store

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 The Mast General Store in Valle Crucis, NC is more than a local general mercantile store serving mountain folk in North Carolina since 1883; it is also an iconic destination for tourists. It originally carried everything from “cradles to caskets”, including milk, bread, cast iron, feed, chicken scratch, mouse traps, locally made bonnets, berry baskets,  overalls, and much more. When a young couple bought the store in 1979, they reinvented the store, maintaining the original flavor while utilizing modern management tools. It has succeeded in large part because of the “feeling” that people have when they leisurely shop the store. It often-times brings back wonderful memories of childhoods, grandparents, hometowns, or maybe just simpler times. An 1883 style of friendly, helpful staff remains. The owners brilliantly highlighted nostalgia while using modern tools to manage, market, and promote the store.

Is this not a lesson for many churches today? Can we not utilize modern technology, tools and methods while honoring past traditions and remain focused on the mission that Jesus clearly instructed in Matthew 28:19 (NIV): “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”?

The mission remains the same, how we achieve it is changing.  

Just like the Mast Store, church traditions can be revered while utilizing new, modern tools and techniques to “make disciples”. It is time for a brain-storming session!

I Found Him…reminiscing in the Mast Store.

I Found Him--Bullfrog

Jeremiah was a bullfrog Was a good friend of mine…Singin' joy to the world All the boys and girls now Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea Joy to you and meAlthough the whimsical lyrics to this 1970’s hit by the Three Dog Night were probably only …

Jeremiah was a bullfrog
Was a good friend of mine…

Singin' joy to the world
All the boys and girls now
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea
Joy to you and me

Although the whimsical lyrics to this 1970’s hit by the Three Dog Night were probably only meant to be fun and even a little silly, they may indeed have real meaning for us. One interpretation is that the bullfrog represents the prophet Jeremiah from the Bible, and that the song represents God's desire to unite all people in happiness.

This may be a stretch, but the song still can give us hope in these troubling times.

How? Acts 16 describes how the jailer of Paul and Silas became suicidal when he thought that they had escaped. Paul and Silas did not escape, however, but instead “spoke the word of the Lord to him” (the jailer). Acts 16:34 sums up the story: “The jailer brought them into the house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God…”. He was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God.

Jesus says it this way as recorded in John 15:10-11: “If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love…I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete”.

Joy to the World!

I Found Him…with a bullfrog in a ditch.

Foggy Mountain Reflection

It was wonderful to feel the presence of God while looking up at the magical sight of the Beech Mountain ski resort with the morning fog lingering at the top. On this crisp September morning, for a few precious moments, the world seemed clean. There…

It was wonderful to feel the presence of God while looking up at the magical sight of the Beech Mountain ski resort with the morning fog lingering at the top. On this crisp September morning, for a few precious moments, the world seemed clean. There was no corona virus, no divisiveness, no hate, no pain. All was well with the world as I breathed in deeply the fresh mountain air.

Jesus’ words from Matthew 26:64, when asked if He was indeed the Son of God seem apropos for this moment. Jesus said: “But I say to all of you; From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven”.

The words from Mark 13:26 also are appropriate when enjoying this fog-filled mountain top. Speaking of the end of times, Mark writes: “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory”.

Soon the fog burned away, a new day began, and the realities of our world set in. I think of two good friends who have recently died from Covid. I mourn; I question; and I listen for God’s soothing reassurance. Paul’ words help from 1 Thessalonians 3:17-18 when he said that believers “will be caught up together…in the clouds to meet the Lord…Therefore, encourage one another with these words”.

I Found Him on a gorgeous, foggy morning on Beech Mountain.

I Found Him-Clematis

Sometimes what one hears or even sees is simply not believable, but it is true. From this close-up image alone, for example, it is difficult to imagine that it is from a Clematis vine; a vine that has a dense mat of leaves that is ideal on trellises…

Sometimes what one hears or even sees is simply not believable, but it is true. From this close-up image alone, for example, it is difficult to imagine that it is from a Clematis vine; a vine that has a dense mat of leaves that is ideal on trellises, fences, and walls. We may doubt this truth until we can see the entire vine.

“Doubting Thomas” initially did not believe that Jesus had risen from the dead when he heard it from other disciples. It’s regrettable that this nickname stuck because who would not have doubted this story? John 20:27-29 (NIV) describes what happened when Thomas did indeed see Jesus: “Then He said to Thomas, ‘put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe’. Thomas said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God’. Then Jesus told him, ‘Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed’”.

None of us have seen Jesus and if honest, most have doubts. Are we “Doubting Thomas’s” or are we willing to accept the account of those who did see Jesus? Jesus said, “blessed are those who have not seen and yet believed”.

Although this image does not look like a Clematis, it is. And even though we did not physically see Jesus rise from the dead, He did!

I Found Him…in the extreme close-up view of a beautiful flowering vine.

I Found Him-Tulips

A breathtaking sea of color abounds at this Eastern NC flower farm filled with gorgeous tulips. As beautiful as they are, though, we know that soon the flowers with wither away.Biblical analogies of flowers falling from their stems as seasons change…

A breathtaking sea of color abounds at this Eastern NC flower farm filled with gorgeous tulips. As beautiful as they are, though, we know that soon the flowers with wither away.

Biblical analogies of flowers falling from their stems as seasons change teaches that change does occur, but one truth remains steadfast—God’s love for us. 1 Peter 1:22-25 states; “Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For ‘All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers in the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever’”.

We live in unbelievably uncertain times. Covid 19 continues to spread, most are under “Stay at Home” orders, and life as we knew it no longer exists. Material possessions that we once thought were so important seem less so now. Relationships matter more. Take comfort in knowing that God’s love endures.

Pray that when this virus is contained that we will emerge stronger in our love for God and in our love for each other. Pray that old wounds heal, divides come together, and that a revival in our hearts will spread throughout the world faster than any virus.

I Found Him in a spectacular field of tulips.