Unclaimed Baggage

Unclaimed Baggage

Unclaimed Baggage is located in Scottsboro Alabama specializing in lost articles either left on airplanes or luggage that has been misdirected with no means to contact the owner.  Unclaimed Baggage offers one an adventure in shopping or just an adventure.  Sometimes going home with a treasure or sometimes empty handed. 

Before dedicating my life to Christ I was much like a lost article at Unclaimed Baggage.  My soul was empty and searching for a place to call home.  I had tried to find happiness in beer and tranquilizers to no avail.  Knowing all the time these were not the answer.  Though I had attended church regularly I had never heard about the salvation Jesus offered.    Upon hearing about Jesus and the wonders of salvation I immediately became a Christian.  Now my wandering soul had found a place to call home.

Before surrendering my life to Christ I was an unredeemed treasure much like those sitting on the shelves at Unclaimed Baggage.  When Jesus purchased me He took me unto Himself and began the process of making me the person He had intended me to be from birth.  Old habits were banished, self-image restored, hunger for the world of God implanted in my heart.  Joy replaced self-incrimination.  Love for others replaced envy.  The clouds of darkness removed from my eyes allowing me to see Jesus and all that He was and all He had in store for my life.  Redemption is a miracle and how glad I am that when Jesus reached out to my unclaimed soul  my response was yes.  No one need be an unclaimed soul living in the misery of this world without hope.  Jesus is always ready and willing to claim your soul and transport you from darkness into His marvelous light.  Don’t hesitate one minute to offer yourself to Him so that He might transform you into His likeness.  You have an adventure in living waiting for you.

Luke 1-78:79 “Because of the tender  mercy of our God, with which the Sunrise from on high shall visit us, to shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Pumpkin

Pumpkin

The other day I was sharing Your giving me Tidbits with two friends.  On the table beside

us was a pumpkin.  I laughingly said if the Lord wishes He could give me a Tidbit about a pumpkin.  Well I feel an embryo of a Tidbit being birthed.  If this is You then please reveal it or I will laugh at my presumption.  Here goes Lord.

Cinderella riding in a royal coach comes to mind. The coach being transformed from an ordinary pumpkin into a royal coach gilded all over in gold by Cinderella’s fairy Godmother.  Cinderella also had been transformed from a lowly scullery maid into a princess.  Of course, that was a fairy tale but real life is so much better.  I was transformed into a princess by my Heavenly Father to ever be united with Him.  My life was much like Cinderella’s oppressed by Satan, not wicked stepsisters, with no hope of ever being free.  Then one day a friend shared the Prince of Peace with me and I was immediately transformed into a new creature never to return to my old oppression.

We encounter scullery maids every day mired down by life’s woes.  As a daughter of the King it is my obligation to share the wonderful Savior with those I meet in the marketplace.  Lord, keep me aware of those souls in bondage that I meet and give me an encouraging word for them that they too may become one of Yours.

You are an awesome God to turn a pumpkin into a Tidbit.  I stand in awe.

Ezekiel 11:19-20

And I will give them one heart, and will put a new spirit within them, And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh so that they may walk in my statues and keep my ordinances, and do to them.  Then they will be my people, and I will be their God.

Turtle

For several weeks I have been thinking about turtles. This often happens. I will have a tiny inkling there is a tidbit somewhere in a thought, but it may take weeks for all the pieces to fit together. 

I read today an Indonesian fable about a turtle that could fly.  He would hold a stick in his mouth and would be carried aloft by geese. On one particular flight from the ground he heard “aren’t those geese brilliant.” Upon hearing the praise going to the geese, he cried out, “it was my idea.” Immediately he lost his grip.

Reflecting on this fable, I thought about us as Christians.  It is my desire to soar for our Father.  With Jesus and the Holy Spirit uplifting us we can truly soar.  Far too often we take our eyes off them and lose our grip.   Pride, self confidence and even sin can cause us to lose our focus.

Next I thought about the race with the turtle and the hare.  The turtle kept his focus and the hare took his ease.  God has a race for each of us.  The finish line is obscure, but the path He lays before us is our destiny.  Often when the path is cluttered with obstacles we pull our head into our shell like Mr. Turtle.  His shell is his protection from outside forces.  Jesus and the Holy Spirit are our protection from the onslaught of the enemy.  God’s path for us is not always smooth but in every instance He is sufficient.  Soaring for Jesus may seem impossible but I am convinced it is His plan for each of us. Hold tight to Jesus and never look down.  Keep your eyes on Him and take the most adventuresome ride of your life.

Hebrews 12:1 “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”

Angelonia

 

Angelonia sits on my patio table in all her beauty.  Angelonia is a beautiful purple-flowering plant. When I tend her regularly, she shows forth her beauty.  When I neglect her, she shrivels up and appears dead.  After watering she returns to her former beauty.  Though her blooms are lovely after I tend her there are evidences of neglect, shriveled branches and dried unopened buds.  Often watering is not enough.  She is hungry for a generous dose of Miracle Grow.  When this is applied, she thrives with gusto. Angelonia is not grounded on my table so when a strong wind comes she often topples.  When she topples, I must set her upright again picking off dead branches and give her tender loving care.

Though my name is not Angelonia I react much as she does.  Jesus came into my heart so that I might show forth His image to the world.  As long as I stay grounded in Him His character shows forth.  Like Angelonia’s broken branches my soul is wounded from neglect.  The only cure for a shriveling soul is confession of sin, repentance, prayer and once again centering on Jesus. Angelonia receives strength from a good application of Miracle Grow while Jesus restores my soul with Himself which in itself is a miracle.  How sad I allow myself to neglect my Savior and suffer the consequences.  Lord, draw me close so I won’t be tempted to neglect You.   Thank you when I do topple from the cares of the world You are faithful to come to my rescue and set me back on the path You have chosen for me.

Psalm 23: 3 “He restores my soul” This is a promise Jesus will always keep if we center our life in Him.  What a Savior we have.

A Snake at Easter

Easter Sunday was a grand church service with people accepting Christ, a blessed time with the Lord. Arriving home, the first thing I saw was a snake about 14 to 16 inches long and about as big around as a pencil resting along the shoe molding in the living room. I said, “You stay there; I’ll be right back.” I went to the garage and decided an axe was the best weapon available. When I returned he was still where I left him. Well, I axed him. As far as I was concerned that was the end of it. As I tell the story, however, the first question from friends has been, “What about your hardwood floor?” It occurred to me that I had never considered the floor. Now I realized why they call it hardwood. That axe didn’t make a dent.

The more I thought about it, I realized there was a moral in this incident.  If the snake represents the presence of evil, the devil, then one of our biggest faults in facing him is, “What if...?”  I had not considered the consequences of axing the floor.  We need to face Satan with the same resolve. We don’t need to consider “What ifs” when we face the forces of evil. How often does Satan win because instead of striking a blow for Jesus, we stop and worry about how we are going to look if we take a stand?   When Satan raises his ugly head we need to have our “axe” ready to strike. After sharing this story with a friend she said, “How does Easter fit in?”  Well, it does.  How appropriate!  On Easter Jesus crushed the head of Satan.  It is finished.  Jesus conquered Satan and transferred that conquering power to us.  Our mandate is to face the forces of evil with the tools Jesus has given us, sharpening our “axe” going out to battle and claim victory.  No more “What ifs.”

John 19:30   “When Jesus therefore had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” and He bowed His head, and gave up His spirit.”

A Most Alarming Experience

Today I am to meet Marie at 9:30 for morning coffee. I slept badly, so I decided to wait until the alarm clock went off at 7:30 to get up. Now understand that the Lord has made it clear that I am to spend quality time with Him before I start the day. Waiting until 7:30 would not have given me much time to do that. When I woke up at 5:30 I told the Lord I was too tired to get up and promptly went back to sleep. Sometime later I was dreaming about a bell ringing in a firehouse, calling the firemen to answer a call. About then the loudest noise, like an air horn, was blaring in my dream. I thought my fire alarm had gone off. Immediately, I jumped up and listened. My response to the dream was to say, “I’m sorry Lord, I will get up and spend time with you before I meet Marie.”

I know there is a call on my life to be like Anna (Luke 2:36-37), spending quality time with the Lord every day in prayer. This is a hard call. It is easier to witness in the marketplace than to discipline myself to untold hours dedicated to fellowship and prayer with Jesus. I am not proud to say this. The reward is always great, but for some reason in the past I have neglected that call. I think after this morning I have seen how important it is to set aside my creature comforts to meet with the Holy God who loves me so much He desires to spend time with me at the start of the day. How awesome this is!

In the past I have dealt with low self-esteem, but the Lord is now showing me who He made me is who He wants me to be. When I think less of myself, I need to always remember He went to the trouble to “sound the alarm” so that I would get up and spend time with Him. Thank you, Jesus, for you love. Please forgive me for putting You off at 5:30. I wonder how many alarms I have missed in the past. I pray I won’t need to be jolted awake anymore but be eager to get up and be at one with You.


Matthew 26:41 Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.

A Date With Jesus

I remember years ago anticipating an upcoming date. Expectancy grew as the day wore on. Then the time arrived. The date was a reality. Some dates turned out to be far better than anticipated and some were an awful flop. Although highly anticipated, the actual date could never be predicted.

This morning as I sat ready to spend time with the Lord, out of my mouth came, “Let’s have a date Jesus.” The great thing about a date with Jesus is that it is never a flop. It is always a wonderful experience. As I thought about this, the problem is we don’t often anticipate our time with Jesus with the expectancy we do with others. Do we present our best to Jesus? A heart eager to fellowship with Him, or one that is doing its duty, like checking off the block of time allotted for “quiet time?” Doing only our Christian “duty” often leaves us without an intimate encounter with Him. How often we take our date with Jesus so cavalier. My, how that must disappoint Him! I wonder if it is a flop date for Him? I imagine He anticipates our date far more than we do. My, how that hurts my heart to think I have taken His feelings so lightly.

I have never known Jesus not to show up for a date. How many times has He quietly called me unto Himself and I have gone about my merry way ignoring His call to my heart? How it saddens me to think that I have ignored His bidding. I pray that in the future I will approach my date with Jesus with the same expectancy I have in the past with others. The wonderful thing about a date with Jesus is that I have that privilege any time, day or night. All I have to do is reach my heart out to Him and He is there waiting for me.

Psalm 19:14 Let the words of my mouth and meditations of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.