Cleaning the stalls

Bill the Magnificent is out of town, and I have the farm to myself. That means I have all the feeding and cleaning to myself. In case you don't know about farms, it also means I have to clean all the horse stalls myself. The good news is that scooping horse pooh is wonderful exercise and burns lots of calories. The bad news is that Bill the Magnificent is further behind with scooping than I realized. 

I did quite a bit of scooping yesterday. Even though it was Sunday, I had to scoop because, really, I didn't have a choice. This afternoon after work, I got another good bit of scooping done. In fact, I can probably afford to have dessert and not worry about calories!  How great is that?

When I am doing all the horse care myself, I prefer to scoop the pooh every day. I like to start each day with a clean stall. Apparently, not everyone feels the same. Regardless, this job must be done and I'm just the woman to tackle it. I am, however, hoping for a snow day tomorrow. I'm definitely going to need a few extra hours!

Thinking about scooping and cleaning stalls always reminds me of a talk I gave some years ago. The topic was "How to Deal with a Broken Heart" and I was so busy scooping that I feared I would never get my talk ready. One day, as I was scooping and praying, I asked The Lord how He thought I was going to get my talk done and figure out how to deal with a broken heart if my horses didn't quit filling up their stalls so quick. I instantly heard that Still Small Voice in my heart ask how I dealt with a stall full of pooh. Finally, I recognized the correct answer. "One scoop at a time!"  Just as soon as I said that, I realized that's how you deal with a broken heart, too. One scoop at a time. 

Most heartaches require time to heal. They also require slow but steady effort at processing the hurt, letting go of anger and bitterness, and moving toward forgiveness. None of thst happens instantly. Instead, it's a "one scoop at a time" job. Perhaps you have heart wounds that need to be healed but seem insurmountable. I know that feeling! Speaking from experience, those hurts, even the ones that cut to your very core, can be healed. Like my stalls, cleaning out hurts is accomplished one bit at a time. Letting go of each layer of hurt opens up the possibility of another layer. Before you know it (even if it takes longer than you wish) all the layers are healed and the hurt is done. 

That's how my stalls will be. I'm going to scoop away and, before long, all the work will be done. I'm going to keep at it. I hope you will, too!

Part 9: The Seething (Luke 5:37)

And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined. (Luke 5:37 NASB)

France, known for its wine production, had a problem. The French winemakers had spoilage of their wine, but didn't know why. In the mid-1800's, the idea of fermentation was not yet understood. What they knew was that, after the crushing, the must would "boil", "seethe", or be "troubled".  They knew the process of troubling the wine was essential, but didn't know what made "good" troubling that led to quality wine production and what made "bad" troubling that led to spoilage. They government hired Louis Pasteur to investigate, and he eventually discovered the process of fermentation. 

The seething or troubling of the wine due to the action of the yeast is good because it is a necessary step in fermentation and a critical part of changing crushed grapes into wine. It doesn't look good, though. It looks as if the grapes are going to be a hopeless loss. Winemaking is not for the faint of heart. It is the perseverance of the winemaker that allows the seething to continue until the yeast have done their work.  

You may be familiar with this process in your loved ones (and likely in yourself as well).  As you watch your loved one experience the crushing, soon followed by seething/boiling/troubling, you may want to give up hope that maturity can ever come out of the mess your eyes can see. Fear not, dear ones. That seething often means that important work is occurring beneath the surface. The winemaker knows that the seething indicates yeast at work, converting sugar into alcohol, and that time is required for completion. Regardless of our fear, time is required for completion of the process of maturity in those we love. 

Pray today that, regardless of appearances, the "seething" will continue until the work of transformation in our loved ones (and in ourselves) is complete. Pray that they will emerge fully matured and free of all sediment in their lives. 

Part 8: the Yeast Workplace (Luke 5:37)

And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined. (Luke 5:37 NASB)

You may not have thought about it yet, but yeast is a living, reproducing microorganism. As such, each type of yeast has it's own genus/species classification with its own specific characteristics. That's important to understand because the yeast we commonly think about is bread yeast, but wine yeast is a completely different organism. 

Bread yeast leaves a specific flavor in the dough, works in the top portion of the dough, and is easily killed by the byproducts of its work (the alcohol that is the byproduct of the action of the yeast on the sugar in the dough).  Wine yeast, on the other hand, is a hardier organism. Wine yeast does not work only on the top of the juice. The yeast begins its work at the very bottom of the container. Remember that sediment in the must (the skin and pulp)? It settles to the bottom because of its weight. That's exactly where the yeast begins to work, at the deepest point in the vat. 

For Christians, the process of transformation can best be accomplished when attention is given early on to all the "root issues" in our lives. Those things that we have hidden away where no one can see but which fuel our responses and actions must be dealt with for us to be free of the past and ready to be transformed. Is there anger, unforgiveness, bitterness, secret sin, or a hurt caused by someone else that has been allowed to fester?  It must be addressed.  

That's where the yeast work begins. At the bottom of it all. It's the only way for the juice to become wine, and the only way for us to become the transformed and mature person Christ intends. 

Pray today that we, and our loved ones for whom we pray, would allow the work of the Holy Spirit to begin at the deepest part of our hearts where our "root issues" are concealed, and that the work would continue until all is healed. 

Part 7: The Yeast (Luke 5:37-38)

And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. (Luke 5:37, 38 NASB)

After the crushing, most winemakers today add yeast and sugar to stimulate and control fermentation. There are some winemakers, however, who rely on "natural" or "wild" fermentation. It turns out that yeast actually gets onto the grapes in the field and, once the grapes are crushed, the "wild" or field yeast begins the fermentation process. Those grapes come in from the field with everything they need to become wine already! The only thing lacking is the crushing!

Imagine that! God, in His infinite wisdom and design, has already arranged everything in advance to allow for preservation of the juice.  

What we need to understand is that He has done the same for us. Even while we were in the field of our rebellion, God was placing in us everything we needed to become the mature believers He intended us to become. All that was lacking was "the crushing" for the process to begin! 

Take heart, dear ones. Crushing is not a bad thing. Allowed to progress to completion, crushing can bring the grapes to maturity as wine, even without any other intervention  (added yeast or sugar) except what God has already done. Those wonderful consequences we can barely stand to experience ourselves or watch in the lives of our loved ones can be the very thing God will use to bring maturity and rich flavor to our lives. Crushing consequences can be the thing that starts the process of preservation of our very lives. How important it is to allow the crushing! 

Dear ones, as we watch our loved ones struggling along the road to faith, trust the One who loves them most. Do not despair! There is a plan, and the crushing is only the beginning of what will become something wonderful. 

Pray that what God has started will be allowed to progress to completion exactly as He planned and that maturity and a firm faith will be the result. 

Friday Night with Friends

Jeff Gray is a sales executive with Systagenix corporation in Arkansas. He is a man of God with a deep love for His Lord, his wife, his family, and the people he serves. He shares a wonderful and timely message that speaks to us all.

Don't forget to make him welcome and leave him some sweet comments at the end of the blog. (Go to the web version to do this. Just click on the link at the end of the blog). Thanks. 

Hope you enjoy!

The Do Over

I want a “DO OVER”!

As I am sitting here in Jackson, MS, watching an inch or 2 of snow bring this city to a standstill, I am thinking that for this business trip, I want a “DO OVER”!!  I saw the weather report with only a 30% chance of winter weather, and I thought that, this far south, there would be no significant problems with the weather.  Well, I was wrong! I need a "DO OVER"!

When I was a youngster, my brother and I would play any sport offered to us, usually basketball or baseball.  Being more than two years younger, I often wanted a DO OVER, since I had just received a thrashing!  

As an adult, I reflect on events of my past, and can remember many times where a DO OVER would have been really nice.  I often think why did I do that, or say that, or participate in that activity……..and the list goes on…

In the midst of my "why did I?"'s, I turn to scripture, and see how many times throughout God’s Word, Old and New Testament,people would have loved to have a DO OVER.  From the beginning with Adam & Eve, to Samson, King Saul, King David, and nearly every other King of Israel or Judah, I bet they would have loved a DO OVER!  How about some New Testament examples?  When Jesus spoke of the Rich Man & Lazarus (Luke 16) it is pretty obvious that the Rich Man would have loved an opportunity for a DO OVER.  When we look at the Apostle Peter, don’t you know he would have LOVED to get a DO OVER of the night he denied his Lord and Savior not once, but THREE times!?!  In the life of the Apostle Paul, while still named Saul, he KILLED Christians, and was one of those opposed to Jesus and calling for his Crucifixion!  I’m sure he would have loved an opportunity for a DO OVER!

And so back to today, to reality, to the daily trudge of work and life in which we we all participate…..  Think about how you live and treat others.  So many of the people in Scripture that we hold in high esteem had the same faults, weaknesses, struggles, and temptations in life that we have today.  We need to learn from their mistakes!  Don't spend your life wishing for DO OVERS. Live today and all your tomorrows in such a way that you long for a DO AGAIN rather than a DO OVER. 

Part 6: The Must (Luke. 5:37-38)

And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. (Luke 5:37, 38 NASB)

The Latin term for young wine "vinum mustum" refers to what is commonly called "must" in winemaking. The must is the just-pressed juice and all the skin, pulp, and seeds. Since wine is a liquid and not a jumble of crushed fruit, the juice will eventually be separated from the must. After the crushing, wine yeast is added to begin the fermentation process. 

For the first few days, while fermentation begins (and those crushed grapes are beginning to be transformed into rich, full-bodied wine), the must remains. It adds flavor to the juice and makes the wine better. Those first few days, it is "must" but in a few days the usefulness of the must comes to an end and it is simply sediment that has to be separated from the juice to avoid spoilage. Must that is allowed to remain with the juice indefinitely will destroy any chance of transformation into quality wine. 

In that same way, the "crushing" that begins the process of transformation for believers will cause the "must" (the old sinful ways, ungodly lifestyle, thoughts, and habits) to separate from the essence that will be retained.  Because of God's great mercy, He does not separate every bit of that must away at once. Instead, He generally peels those layers of sin and hurt away gently and painstakingly. At just the right time, however, our old life will have to go for us to become all that God intends. Separation from our spiritual must is not only inevitable, it is essential and invaluable. If we choose to keep the old way, habits, addictions, hurts, it will only serve to bring destruction to the new creature in Christ we were meant to become. 

What remains of the must in our lives and the lives of our loved ones? How much longer will we cling to what can only bring destruction? Pray today that God will shine light in our darkness and reveal exactly what lingering must needs to be removed so that we can become what God intended. Pray too for hearts that are so tired of the destruction that letting go of the must becomes the highest priority.