Morning Dew

“Your strength will be renewed each day like the morning dew.” (Ps. 110:3 NLT)

When I go outside in the early mornings, I notice the tiny droplets of water on leaves. It hasn’t rained; it’s just condensation of water vapor due to the cooler overnight temperatures. Once the sun comes up and warms the air, the morning dew will disappear. I think the dew is fascinating and beautiful, but I’m not dependent on it. However, for those who live in deserts, morning dew can be integral to survival. Desert dwellers wake up in the middle of the night to collect dew from underneath half-buried rocks. They lay out absorbent cloth on desert grasses so they can wring out every precious drop to quench their thirst.

Our surroundings are saturated with the Holy Spirit. When we spend time in contemplation, particularly in the early mornings, our minds become surfaces for Spirit condensation. These subtle droplets of wisdom and clarity are easy to overlook. Unless you are going through a desert experience—then you depend on every dewdrop for sustenance. Spiritual strength and wisdom are available to all of us—but not at our convenience. It is time-sensitive. Once the sun comes up, these insights quickly dry up as the distractions of the day take over. So take time to collect the morning dew; drink deeply—for it renews our strength and refreshes our souls.

Life Maintenance

When buying a car, most of us consider the excitement of owning and driving a new vehicle. The initial cost of purchase and gas mileage might also be a concern. Yet, very few of us take the cost of long-term maintenance into account. According to Consumer Reports, “Over the first five years of ownership, the median car costs more than $9,100 a year to own.” http://consumerreports.org/cro/2012/12/what-that-car-really-costs-to-own/index.htm

In addition to the monetary expenditure, there is also a cost in time and energy required to maintain a car: cleaning the interior and exterior, changing windshield wipers, scheduling routine maintenance, taking care of insurance and registration paperwork, fixing broken windshields, flat tires, rust spots, dings, and scratches. When we fail to factor in the resources needed to maintain something, we contribute to its deterioration. 

Life Maintenance—“The basic things one needs to do to keep life flowing smoothly along.” (Urban Dictionary)

Most of us recognize that we have to earn an income and feed, shelter, and clothe ourselves and our family. Once we have accomplished that, we might turn our attention to entertainment, vacations, and hobbies. We budget our money, time, and energy for these obvious endeavors. Yet, there are a thousand other minuscule tasks for which we neglect to allocate time and energy. Think about the things you have to do daily, monthly, and annually, to keep your life flowing smoothly.

Life Maintenance can be sorted into a few broad categories:

Relationship maintenance, Health Maintenance, Home Maintenance, Financial Maintenance, Crisis Management, Intellectual, Moral and Spiritual Development.

If you are young and single, you might not have to allocate as much energy to all these categories. As you get older, certain categories will consume more energy than others. If you are married with children, you might choose to divvy up the responsibilities between you and your partner. Problems arise when we completely neglect some sections in order to focus on other areas of life.

When we fail to factor in the resources required to maintain all aspects of our life, we contribute to its deterioration.

(I have a ‘Life Maintenance List’ that fits my family. It gets updated every 5 years to fit our current stage of life. If you would like a copy of my current list, just email me or comment below with your email address, and I can send it to you.) 

Faithful

(Psalms Study)

 “I will search for faithful people to be my companions.” (Ps. 101:6 NLT)

Dogs can be faithful; spouses promise to be faithful; faithful friends, employees, customers, church members, followers, fans, and citizens are all highly valued.

What do all these have in common? They are loyal, constant, devoted, uncritical, dependable, steadfast, committed, consistent, reliable, accepting, supportive, forgiving, and trustworthy. They can be counted on—to be there for you—no matter what. 

If we have a few faithful companions in our life, we are truly blessed.  Yet, because this level of commitment takes a great deal of effort, we can only maintain a few such relationships. We want to be faithful to those who are worthy of our devotion.

“His unfailing love continues forever, and His faithfulness continues to each generation.” (Ps. 100:5 NLT)

God is faithful. He has always been there for us. His love is unconditional. He accepts us, even though He knows us inside out. He is committed to us and wants the best for us. We can count on Him forever.  This is a relationship worth investing in—God is worthy of our faithfulness. 

How can we be faithful? A faithful wife makes sure that nothing and no one displaces her husband’s position in her life. Philosophers like Blaise Pascal and St. Augustine have pointed out that there is a God-shaped void in all of us. When we allow anything or anyone to take God’s space, we are being unfaithful to Him. Faithfulness requires unwavering commitment, devotion, perseverance, and vigilance. I pray that I may remain steadfast to the One who has always been faithful. 

Widening Gaps

My smart phone is not as smart as it used to be. The operating system is a few years old and thus cannot run many of the newer apps. My laptop, on the other hand, has a newer operating system and can't run many of the older devices. Not all software is updatable. Once the gap between hardware, software, and operating systems becomes too wide, the best option is to buy new devices that are compatible with each other.

Most of us have noticed similar gaps between members of different generations. The values and standards among generations are often so dissimilar that it becomes difficult to relate to each other. Generational gaps are nothing new, so humans have learned to operate within these parameters, albeit inefficiently.

Immigrants and their children face an even bigger challenge. Along with generational and technological differences, they have to face the additional hurdle of a cultural gap. Immigrants who spend their formative years in one country and later move to a new culture find that the ideological gap between themselves and successive generations can be awfully wide. These differences result in a great deal of internal conflict and self-doubt in individuals as well as severe rifts between relatives. 

Widening gaps lead to incompatibility. In the case of technological advancement, we have the option of upgrading software or gadgets. However, we don’t always have this option with other people we are obligated to interact with—whether they be neighbors, co-workers, or relatives. We can find friends and contemporaries who might share our ideologies and perspectives, but we are still stuck with certain discordant relationships. In order to minimize conflict, we have to find ways to detach. We may have to disconnect from codependent social circles in order to find peace, harmony, and contentment. 

Revolutions

The Agricultural Revolution changed humans from being nomadic hunter-gatherers into settlers who cultivated and harvested their food. It led to surplus food, increased longevity, villages, governments, and societal hierarchies.

The Industrial Revolution changed humanity further. We went from beings that worked with our bodies and tools, to operators of machines. Industrialization caused a major shift in ideologies, priorities, living conditions, and human relationships.

More recently, the Digital Revolution has transformed the world. Disseminating and accessing information is vastly different now than a few decades ago. Every aspect of life—from dating, parenting, education, shopping, cooking, bill paying, communicating, banking, healthcare, business, travel, entertainment—has been completely altered. 

I wonder how humanity would be affected by a Spiritual Revolution. Would we strive for divine enlightenment rather than mere earthly existence? Would we be powered by the Spirit rather than our egos? Would it change our priorities, relationships, and lifestyle? 

Clearing Space

I hate fighting. I crave peace and quiet. Yet it seems that my day is filled with battles. Internally, I grapple with doubt, fear, anxiety, insecurity, frustration, control issues, distractions, intolerance, and a multitude of weaknesses. Externally, I struggle with relationships, daily work, finances, health, limitations of time and energy, crowds, cultural expectations, chaos, injustice, etc. Conflict is part of the human condition, yet not all battles are purposeful.

“We have to replace the battle for power with the battle to create space for the Spirit.” (Henri Nouwen, The Road to Daybreak)

As I monitor the reasons behind my daily struggles, I realize how many of them are battles for power as opposed to battles to create space for the Spirit.

How does one create space for the Spirit?

Is it like decluttering a room full of junk, rearranging the furniture, painting the walls, and adding some coordinating throw cushions? I don’t think so. Henri Nouwen described the process as a battle—so it must be more like the clashes for land between Israel and Palestine. The Enemy appeals to my ego and establishes settlements in my soul. The Holy Spirit fights back, reclaiming lost territory.

“The combat is not against human enemies, nor against our own corrupt nature only; we have to do with (deal with) an enemy who has a thousand ways of beguiling unstable souls. If we give way, he will get ground. If we distrust either our cause, or our Leader, or our armor, we give him advantage.” (Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary of Ephesians 6:12)   

The battle to create space for the Spirit involves combating negative human influences, our own internal corrupt nature, and forces beyond our perception. Darkness has a myriad of tools to infiltrate and occupy our souls. It feeds the ego while starving the soul. The more territory we cede, the more the enemy gains. How do we reclaim space for the Spirit? We must trust the cause, our Leader, and our armor.  

Mining for Truth

“When I went home last night, I thought, ‘What do I have to say to these men and women who are so earnest in their search for God and live such good lives?’ But then I realized that the only thing I have to do is to say loudly what they already know in their hearts so that they can recognize it as really theirs and affirm it in gratitude.” (Henri Nouwen, from Seeds of Hope)

Great authors, like Nouwen, say out loud what we already know deep inside our minds. They bring to the surface things we didn’t know we knew. Sometimes these revelations invoke a sense of gratitude; other times it’s just disturbing. Truth hides in the deep recesses of each of us. Some truths are like diamonds which are waiting to be excavated. They have to be cleaned up, cut, and polished before we can appreciate their beauty, brilliance, and clarity.

Other truths are disturbing. It’s like digging a hole in your backyard and finding a sinkhole or sewer. Most of us would rather that these unpleasant truths stay deep underground where they are less bothersome. We don’t appreciate it when someone brings it up, thus forcing us to confront issues that we find uncomfortable.

In our city, before we dig any deep holes, we have to get clearance from all the utility companies. A few days after you make the call, a technician will come and put flags in the yard to let you know where the water pipes, electric/gas/phone/septic lines are buried, so that you don’t dig near them and cause damage. Similarly, it’s important to understand a person’s psychological wiring before you dig too far. 

I relish discovering positive truths about myself and the world. I am not fond of unearthing things which reveal the negative, dark side of humanity. Sometimes, I too feel called to say loudly what others already know in their hearts. I wish truth were always pleasant, uplifting, and inspiring—yet, unfortunately, it isn’t. So I am learning to excavate carefully.

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