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This is a story that I shared at my Tuesday night Bible study, and it was requested that I re-tell it two or three times, so I thought it might be a good one to write down.

John and I recently lost our kitty Figaro, who had been with us from the beginning of our relationship of over eleven years. He was very dear to us and we still ache over the loss. A few months after he passed, we decided to get another cat, both to keep Boo company, and to help soften the blow of the gaping hole left by Fig. No one could take his place, but if we could find a cat who would remind us of him, our hearts would be comforted.

We looked for online for weeks, and almost got a couple of kittens. Then John found a long-haired black and white cat and we decided to go have a look at her. It only took about 2 seconds for me to decide this was would be my cat. She purred and flirted and twirled around as soon as I started scratching her head. Done deal!

The very next day, as I carried her outside for a photo shoot, our 70 pound dog walked up to check her out. The cat wanted nothing to do with such an introduction. She bolted out of my arms and within seconds had disappeared into the woods. Instantly my heart sank to the floor. Animals get confused when they first move to a new place, and usually start heading “home” since they do not consider the new place to be home yet. They rarely come back. I felt like such a fool for taking her outside, and I knew I could never forgive myself. This was not acceptable. It felt like we were losing Fig all over again, and I just couldn’t take it. I gave up all hope of getting her back. I didn’t even want to look for her.

John had more faith, and while I was out doing errands, he kept looking and looking and went around to all the neighbors asking if they had seen her. He sat in the yard for hours waiting for her to come home. Later that night I went to my Bible study. We prayed for her, and feeling a little encouraged, I prayed on the way home. Let me re-phrase that. I prayed my GUTS out ALL the way home.

I basically had a heart-to-heart with God, reasoning with him and pleading with him. By the time I got home from my hour long commute, I had come to believe that God would bring her back, unless there was a really good reason not to. My faith took a 180, from knowing I WOULD NOT find her to knowing that I WOULD find her.

Those eyes. This cat has the most glowing eyes I have ever seen. That’s it! I would take a flashlight out and look around the yard until her eyes lit up. As soon as I got home, I raced out the door, flashlight, tuna and treats in hand, calling “Pwrrrttt, pwrrttt, here kitty, kitty, kitty” and believing every second that I would find her. It’s amazing how faith that something will happen changes your actions, and your whole attitude.

I searched the east side of yard first, then the front, down the creek and over to the woods. Then I went in the back, inside the fence, around the woods, and there she was. She let out a little, “Mew” when she saw me. “There you are sweetheart!,” I answered back.

But she ran from me.

What? You prefer the cold, dark, rainy woods, with no chance of eating, but a great chance of being eaten? You prefer that to the safety of my arms, where I will take you into a warm dry house, feed you good food and clean water, and give you all the attention you could ever want? If she only knew how much I loved her. She would have come running to me. But to her I was still a stranger.

She slipped through a hole in our 4 foot high cattle fence, and I had no choice but to climb over after her. She continued to walk away from me. I dropped to the ground and started praying and pleading with God to tell her it was ok to come to me. As I prayed, she started to come towards me, and after a couple of tries, I was able to grab her.

She was in my arms now, but we were not out of the woods yet, literally! I was now on the OUTSIDE of our fence, holding onto a cat for dear life, and would have to walk all the way around the outside of the fence, in the dark, braving slippery rocks, spider webs, and thorn bushes before getting back to safety. But failure was not an option! I would get this cat home, even if it meant breaking a limb or losing blood. I loved her so much, that any sacrifice required of me seemed completely trivial. I was overjoyed that I had found her and nothing could stop me from bringing her home.

We made it back into the house, and she is still with us to this day. We are thankful every day for this small but meaningful gift God has placed in our lives.

As I was carrying her home that night, I was reminded of what God and Jesus went through for us. We were strangers when he called us, sinners, running from him, because we didn’t understand that what he offered was safety and warmth. We ran from him, but he went after us anyway, and he willingly, joyfully sacrificed himself, because of his great love for us. I cannot comprehend why the creator of the universe would take the time to go looking for me, chase me in out of the rain, and bring me into his house, all because he delighted in me. But it makes a little more sense now that I have felt a small fraction of this type of love in my own heart.

I used to never understand when people would say “Don’t do it in your own strength.” That used to really baffle me. I still don’t like the saying, because it’s a cliché and doesn’t really make sense when you say it as a one liner, but I’m starting to understand where they were coming from. The phrase needs a little explanation though.

OK, so I know I’m supposed to trust God and lean not on my own understanding. But does that mean I can’t use my own strength too? Does God want me to disengage my brain? That doesn’t make sense.

We were talking about this at home church last week, and my friend Kay had an illustration that helped me understand it a littler better.

She told us about a time when she went hiking in the mountains and was supplied with hiking boots especially designed to help you go down steep hills without falling on your face. The tendency when you are going downhill is to lean backwards to keep from falling, but with the boots, you suddenly have superhuman power to lean forward while walking downhill. That must be really cool. I’d like to try it sometime! The funny thing is, these silly folks still wanted to lean backwards. The instructor had to keep reminding them to “trust the boots,” and lean forward. See where I’m going with this?

Unless we are willing to lean hard into God, we are missing the whole point of his power in our lives. Of course we continue to use all of our own strength, meager as it is, but the direction of our lives depends on which way we lean.

Are you going to lean forward into the supernatural plans God has for your life, or are you too scared to take that risk of falling on your face?

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. “ (Proverbs 3:4-7)

“Commit your way to the Lord [roll and repose each care of your load on Him]; trust (lean on, rely on, and be confident) also in Him and He will bring it to pass.” (Psalm 37:5)

At the end of every great weekend is another Monday. At five minutes until the start of my two hour commute, this Monday morning was about to tick-tock me out the door.

We had been blessed with a rare visit with my niece, her husband, and their three young boys. Our property is a kid’s paradise, and they used it all, even down to the forgotten pool toys at the bottom of the bin. I had no idea you could have so much fun with batman goggles.

While the two older boys, Brandon and Conner, were busy devouring the outdoors, Zach, the two year old, stayed inside and kept the adults entertained.

As I savored the last few minutes before I had to leave, Zach looked up at me and decided I looked like someone fun to help with his blocks. This is what amazes me about kids. He had known me for less than twenty-four hours, yet he trusted me enough to build a house in my hands. There was something so precious about that moment.

My heart was heavy as I said goodbye and loaded myself into the car. Being with my nephews reminded of how much I would still like to have children, and I was also thinking about the new challenge that God had recently put in our path –  helping to plant a new church.

I should have know better than to turn on the radio. Music has a power that should not be taken lightly. It has a way of hooking itself around your heart. Meanwhile, the words take advantage of a captive audience. This particular morning, it was the familiar crooning of the Newsboys that reeled me in.

“Stay strong
You are not lost.
Come on and fix your eyes ahead.
There’s a new dawn to light our day.

Stay strong. You and I run
For the prize that lies ahead.
We’ve come too far to lose our way.”

God knew that I felt lost, and that I needed to stop worrying and trust Him to lead us safely into our next assignment. Zach had it figured out. Just look up at someone bigger and start putting your blocks in their hands.

“Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain.” (Psalm 127:1)

I absolutely love where we live. We own an acre of land which is surrounded by several more acres of woods. You can barely see our house from the road when the leaves are on the trees. We have a bubbling brook running through our front yard that was flowing even during the worst part of the drought last year. Our grass was green when our friends’ yards in the next town were brown and prickly. We have a pool, a pond, and two decks. It’s been beautiful with the spring colors on the dogwood, and the little pink azaleas. (This was written a few months ago.) On our drive home we see gorgeous mountain foothills, horses, happy Holstein cows and beautiful sunsets.

But there is this one little thing that might make some people turn up their noses at our lovely little farm – We live in a mobile home. I like to call it a manufactured home because it sounds better, and also because it’s more accurate. There is nothing “mobile” about our home. It is on a permanent foundation and has been here for 20 years.

Many people do not understand the difference between manufactured, mobile, modular and stick built houses. Hang onto your hat because you are about to learn. The difference is simply this – Modular and stick built homes are made according to both national and local codes, and both kinds appreciate in value. Manufactured is just another term for a mobile home, and these only need to follow national codes. Historically, they have had a tendency to depreciate in value.

Stick built homes are built from scratch on site, with sticks (a.k.a. two by fours), thus the name. This is the traditional type of home that most people look for. They tend to always appreciate in value and there is no stigma attached to them like there tends to be with other types.

Modulars do not deserve the bad rap they have gotten. From what I understand, they are made to the exact same quality and standards as a stick built. The only difference is that some of the parts, like the walls or the dormers, are put together in a factory, then transported to the site. They come in kits or models, thus the name “modular”, and because they are factory produced, in part, they are cheaper to build.

Mobile homes (a.k.a. manufactured) are built entirely in the factory, then put together, usually from two or three large pieces, on site. They are also called double-wides, single-wides or triple-wides, depending on how many pieces are used. These are the homes you see coming down the road on semi trucks, taking up both sides of a two lane highway. In the 80’s they started building these “trailors” to higher standards, put them on permanent foundations and started calling them manufactured homes.

The manufactured homes they are building these days are looking better and better. You would be hard pressed to tell the difference between some of the new ones and a regular old stick built. This is encouraging to me. I hope that one day they lose their bad reputation and begin to appreciate in value, as they should, when well cared for.

Before we purchased our manufactured home, I did a lot of research to figure out why they tend to depreciate. This puzzled me, and still does. I found that it boils down to two things. One, they are built with cheaper materials. For example, the sticks that hold the walls up are usually thinner. Two, they are harder to maintain because it is harder to find supplies. If you want to replace the tub in an older manufactured home, you can’t just run down to Lowe’s and pick one out. They don’t carry them in the correct size.

Still, I don’t think these are the real reasons they tend to depreciate. I think it is more of a complex social issue. Mobile homes have for years littered the countryside in “trailor parks”. Though I’ve seen some in Arizona which are amazingly lovely, these tend to be places that are not well kept, and this has led many to believe that all mobile homes are junky.

That they are harder to maintain is somewhat true, because it is harder to find parts that fit. But when you do find the parts, you can keep your home in good shape, which of course helps tremendously to keep the value up. We are fortunate to have a mobile home supply store nearby, so we can buy all the tubs and doors we need - made especially to fit our little hobbit hole home with it’s low ceilings and miniature bathing units.

People also tend to believe that mobile homes are tornado magnets and will crumble at the first puff of wind. I’m sorry, but if a tornado were flying overhead, I would not feel safe in any kind of home. On the contrary, these babies are designed to survive while trucking down the highway at 65 miles per hour. I read somewhere that there was a hurricane that hit a section of a town and while some of the stick built homes were flattened, the manufactured ones were still standing.

“Those who live in manufactured homes built and installed since 1994 are as well protected as their neighbors who live in site built homes constructed according to the Florida Building Code. They should be afforded comparable insurance coverage at comparably calculated premiums. Many older site built and manufactured homes can be strengthened in order to be safer and insurable.” http://www.myfloridainsurancereform.com/docs/relatedResources/Manufactured%20homes%20hurricane%20performance.pdf

 “In 1994, HUD amended the Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards to provide for greater protection for mobile/manufactured homes from wind damage. During the severe hurricane seasons of 2004 and 2005, no mobile/manufactured home that was built after these new standards went into effect sustained any significant structural damage from the storms.” http://www.flhsmv.gov/mobilehome/MHConstructionandSafetyStandards.pdf

All this to say that even if you still think mobile homes are cheap, they can’t be that bad since that’s what God has chosen to live in. His temple is not built with wood or bricks or human hands. He has chosen instead to live in us, frail and weak as we are.

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?” (1 Cor. 6:19)

I take comfort in this. As my wise friend Kay once said, “God did not put us on this earth to be home owners.” My goals are set much higher than brick and wood.

“Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling.” (2 Cor 5:1 -2)

My husband John just graduated from Gordon-Conwell seminary with a Masters in Biblical Studies. We attended the commencement ceremony where close to 70 people were graduating with masters and doctorate degrees.

It was hard to keep myself from being mesmerized by all the colorful and interesting robes and hats as they marched in and out and across the podium. I couldn’t help wondering what each color and shape meant. I found out that one advantage of becoming a doctor is that you get to wear a funnier looking hat. I kept thinking about C. S. Lewis’ time when they wore these robes daily, a constant reminder of your rank in society.

I was impressed by one of the student speakers, Teresa Kay Hood, who had the foresight to realize we would be distracted by these colorful status symbols. She talked about how she was broken as a person before she came to seminary, and how she had found healing and new life in the process of her studies. She referred to herself as a cracked pot that had been mended. Then she took it a step further, with love, daring to challenge the caste system. “Don’t be fooled by the regalia and bright colors you see today. Underneath these robes are cracked pots – all,” she said, with a sweet smile and quiet confidence radiating from her face.

That was just the beginning of the theme of Christ-like humility that flowed through the entire service. It was unlike any other graduation ceremony I had ever attended. We were there to celebrate human accomplishment, yet the focus was skillfully shifted back to Christ. The highest award was given to the biggest servant. It was called the “Towel and Basin Award.” The professors and graduating students were all humble servants, grateful to God for their gifts and privileges, while oozing with passion to give it all back to Christ and his church.

Haddon Robinson, the keynote speaker, a man of great accomplishment, had no interest in promoting himself,  but exuded the warmth and grace that comes only by walking with God your entire life. His speech was about putting others first, a brilliant mini-sermon, but his heart and example communicated even more than his words. I ran into him in the hall afterwards. He didn’t know me from Adam and Eve, yet he greeted me as if I were his favorite niece.

I no longer believe the theory that seminaries are cemeteries where people go to die and lose their faith. We are already dead, without the light of Christ in our lives. Spending four to eight years with your face in the Word, as well as the words of those who have gone before us, you cannot help but shine a little brighter as you reflect back that light in your own face. I see this light in my husband, and I see it in the faces of those who have dedicated their lives to study. Now my only problem is deciding what my emphasis will be when it’s my turn to go seminary.

As we all know, the things of this world, also known as temporal, or temporary things are useful while we are on earth, but after we leave, they will be of no use to us. They will be rubbish. Precious gold will be gravel in the New Jerusalem. (Rev 21:21)

As we live on this earth however, in order to stay alive, we must continue to use at least some of these things, such as food, clothing and shelter. The challenge presented to us it to keep it all in perspective, realizing that our time on this earth is short, and we must not become entangled in these things. It is a challenge to keep our minds on eternal things, the things which will last forever.

We will not want any of the temporary things of earth once we are in our eternal home, the New Heaven and New Earth. (Rev 21:1) In fact, we are not even given that option.

A computer creates something known as “temp” or temporary files, which are all files ending in .tmp. Do a search for *.tmp on your computer, and you will see how many you have. These are files that are useful for a short time, but quickly clutter up your computer if you don’t take time to delete them. The things of life are the same way. They clutter up our lives and snuff out the important things if we don’t make an effort to keep the proper perspective. Just as our computers need to be serviced with regular deleting sessions, our drawers, garages, and brains need to be cleaned out from time to time, to make room for the eternal treasures of much greater worth.

This lesson on eternal perspective is something that God has been trying to teach to me for years, and especially in the last year or so. I would like to share with you what he has brought me through, and also some of the Scriptures that God has used to break the hold of the temporary on my life. I still have so much to learn, and have to keep reminding myself by going back to these Scriptures. Much of this is straight out of my journal, from the Spring of 2002, when I was really struggling. I will share that story in a minute.

“And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may surely learn to sense what is vital, and approve and prize what is excellent and of real value.”  (Phil 1:9-10, NIV, AMP)

Read that verse again. It is so important. Wow.

I have just recently started trying to buy and resell antiques and thrift items on eBay. One thing that I have learned from this is the importance of knowing the value of items before I buy them for resale, so that I can make a profit. It is important that I know what items have real value, albeit temporary, verses items that are just plain junk, that nobody wants. If I don’t learn what has value and what doesn’t, I waste my time and money.

It is even more important that we keep in perspective the infinitely greater value of eternal things such as God, unconditional love, and people, and keep that in proportion to the things that only work for this earth. This takes wisdom and discernment.

The point is not that you are more spiritual if you live in a cave with nothing but a spoon, but that you need to be constantly growing in knowledge and depth of insight, as the first above says, so that you can keep it all in perspective. Then hopefully, one day, you will get to a place where if you are stuck in a cave with nothing but a spoon, you will still be happy.
                                                                                                         
A friend once told me about an article in a magazine which showed pictures of families standing in front of their homes, with all of their possessions in a big pile next to them. It was a study in different cultures. They selected families from various countries, occupations and social positions. It was interesting to view how happy the families appeared, compared to how much stuff they had. One family had only a pan to cook food in. That was their only possession. Yet they were very happy and content with their cooking pan.

Whenever we move and take all of our junk out of our house to try to cram it into a little moving truck, I am reminded of this verse: “… a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”  (Luke 12:15) Isn’t that the truth! The things we save! Why? I know I could get by with so much less. Having many possessions does not always make us happier, and it is often a burden. We should strive to hold onto only what we need, and share the rest with others.

Another favorite verse that helps me get back on track is this:

  “…For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” (1 Peter 1: 17-19, NIV)   What an awesome verse. How true!

Here is the story I promised to share from my personal life. In the Spring of 2002, we decided to move to Charlotte, North Carolina. Part of me wanted to move, but I was anxious about the habit my husband, John and I were developing of moving once every year. This would be our 3rd move in just 3 years of marriage. I did not like this pattern. I was scared. I started to worry that we would never settle down, never buy a house and never have stability in our lives.

But I knew that John really wanted to move so, trying to be a good wife, I decided to go to God and to Scripture instead of whining to my husband and insisting on having my way. And God showed me that I was in the wrong. He showed me that my motives were earthly and selfish, particularly from the following verse:

 “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” (James 4:1 - 4 NIV)

When I realized that I needed to change my attitude and stop worrying about earthly, temporary things, I had peace. I remembered, as a friend of mine has said, “God didn’t put us on this earth to become homeowners.” I had to realize that it really didn’t matter if we never owned a home. Then seven months later, God took care of that desire of my heart anyway, and my husband bought us a house.

God also reassured me that he was well aware of not just my needs, but my desires and that everything I needed, physically, emotionally, he would provide.

“All my longings lie open before you, O Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you.” (Psalm 38:9 NIV)  

“Those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.” (Psalm 34: 10b NIV)

“The fear of the LORD leads to life: Then one rests content, untouched by trouble.” (Proverbs 19:23 NIV)

He knows all of our needs and wants, and desires to bring us good things.

The result, now that we have moved is that God has taken care of us. He has provided for our needs in more ways than I had even hoped for. We bought a house sooner than I thought we would, John has a better job, which he enjoys, and we have great friends! But the best part is the what God taught me and the peace it brought into my life by changing my perspective. And this is a lesson that we all have to keep re-learning  throughout life as we grow in knowledge and wisdom and depth of insight. (Phil 1:9-10)

Verses located with the help of Bible Gateway