Self Medicate
“A cheerful heart is good for your health, gloom and doom leave you bone-tired” (Pro. 17:22 -MSG)
How many of us are … TIRED? Sorry for yelling. Perhaps sadden or depressed, confused or greatly disappointed, wounded or beaten down. These all are wrapped up nicely in the Hebrew phrase for “a broken spirit drieth the bones.” One resource has this to say: “A broken spirit describes the life, the vitality, the drive, the spirit of a person that has been oppressed by a grieved heart.” *
The cartoon rendering of the heart, is that of a mirrored angel wing, bouncing rhythmically from the chest, which isn’t to far from the truth. Metaphorically the heart beats of our feelings, will and intellect, passions… our inner self.
This proverb so divinely inspired, instructs us that the best successful cure for a dried up, and may I add ‘icky’ disposition is that of a CHEERFUL HEART. This is the ONLY place in the Old Testament, that this use of the word for ‘medicine’ is used… hm.
Welcome to my world, here is where I have been the last few weeks. When thinking, pondering and meditating on this verse, I found myself offering expressions that others may deem … um …. SILLY – even IMMATURE, and down right EMBARRASSING! Let me explain. I have been emotionally and spiritually … tired. To regain my strength, first … prayer … the Word … then my goal has been to try to make as many people smile, laugh, be encouraged, lifted up, and take a look and enjoy their surroundings as possible. Have you seen those COLORS outside!
I have waved at folks in their cars (don’t have a clue who they are) Stopped, held up a line, elbows on counter, looked the cashier in the eyes, and asked ‘how are YOU doing today?’ (interesting response) I sent a package to a dear friend, ‘just because’. Sent a poem via text, wrote the STUPIDEST things on FaceBook, like: “Ever stop to think, and forget to start again” and “Why hasn’t there been a sequel to Titanic?” Then today, when picking up my son from school, as he approached the car and climbed in, he was greeted with a pair of silly glasses with a HUGE nose, mustache and fluffy eye brows beautifully placed upon his mothers face, if I do say so myself. Pair of glasses … $1.57. Giggle from son … priceless! And yes, I drove a short distance down the street like that.
“A cheerful heart is good for your health.” Sometimes, faith comes by acting out of faith. OH, we may not FEEL it, but if our heart isn’t responding to life’s advances the way we would like, and all we are getting in our bucket seems to be lemons, well … you know the saying. Then advance BACK with a CHEERFUL heart… make someone laugh, smile, bless their socks off. In doing so, make YOURSELF laugh, smile, be blessed. So the cycle continues. God, grace, godly gestures … GOOD medicine.
I would never imply we ignore our issues, or ignorantly look the other way of our own heartache, but even as in a balance meal, dessert is just a course away (personally I have been ordering dessert FIRST). The word says, ‘a cheerful heart is good medicine’ – SELF MEDICATE, with the help of the Holy Physician. Wave at those passing cars, smile at the librarian, text someone to get a ‘LOL’ in return, invest in some silly glasses. Be creative, I call these ‘mini ministries’.
Life is short, just enough room and time to enjoy ‘regardless’. God is good.
In Him, DeDe (Ps.94:2 “You thrill me, LORD …)
* Quote from: Complete Word Dictionary of the O.T. — other resources used: Theological Dictionary of the O.T., Strong’s Hebrew/Greek Dictionary/Concordance, The Vine’s, International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Expository Dictionary of Bible Words. Translations looked at: KJV, NASB, NLT, NIV, MSG
~ Side Note: Medical articles state that how we handle stress and other emotional factors affect the potential of illness such as: upset stomach, muscle aches, tension headaches, weight loss, ulcers, panic attacks, chronic fatigue syndrome, lack of energy, inability to focus.
Pain Turning to Hope
Waiting . Isn’t it HOARDS of fun? Yes, that is a rhetorical – sarcastic question. Nothing, floats my boat, rolls my socks, more than … waiting. I am kidding of course, whether it be in a check out stand, gas line, or in a season of life, I am not a good wait-er.
Recently studying in Genesis, I was again reminded of just how ‘human’ the characters are. This is my take on … Noah. Quickly setting the scene: God is grieved over mans ‘ickiness’, (yes that now is a word), He’s starting over. He instructs Noah to build the first Titanic, however, this one IS unsinkable. Noah obeys beyond the critical looks, and behind his back snickers. He builds the ark and gathers the animals. Loading up, God shuts the door and it begins to get quite wet out.
Forty days it rains. Let’s look at this picture a little closer. Get your rain coat on, and step up to a window and look inside the Ark with me… animals EVERYWHERE! Where there are animals there is … um … poo. Here is where I would like to be a fly. No, too ugly – a butterfly on the cypress wood, and observe Mrs. Noah. What a TROOPER, knee deep in poo and yet there is no documented complaint from her. Go Mrs. N !
Ok, get serious. Genesis 8, the rain stops. Noah sends out the raven, then the dove, the dove returns because there is no place to land yet. Verse 10 “He WAITED seven more days ...” (emphasis mine) Noah waited. In the Hebrew this waiting is a painful waiting, as to wring the hands, not a mere sitting on a crate playing cards passing the time. It refers to either pain in the physical sense or in the emotional, of suffering and sorrow. Noah and his family in the ark, God preserves them, now he (they) wait.
Had God forgotten him? Will he forever spend the rest of his life in a stinky ship full of animals? How many rounds of ‘Row row row your boat’ do they HAVE to sing, those silly sons! No, we really don’t know what he was thinking, but his waiting was anguishing.
David penned “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him …” ~ Psalms 37:7. The same Hebrew word for ‘wait’ is used here. He too knew … ‘wait’. Anointed to be king as a young boy, deadly pursuit by King Saul … wait.
BUT, the story, the waiting does NOT stop there. Noah sent out the dove AGAIN, that evening the dove returned with an olive branch, “Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth. He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but THIS TIME it did not return to him.” (Gen. 8:11-12)
Noah waited. We read that and think … ‘the guy is getting good at waiting.’ YET, his waiting has changed. First he ‘hil’ (Hebrew) ‘painful waiting’, now after the olive branch, he sends the dove out with hope, ‘yahal’ (Hebrew) a confident expectation in his wait. His pain has turned to hope. The results of his hope … “but this time it did not return to him” The dove had landed happily in an olive tree somewhere. I LOVE the ‘this time’ of waiting.
Hope, it will carry us a long way, as long as it doesn’t carry us in the wrong direction. “Hope is NOT a pacifying wish of the imagination which drowns out troubles, nor is it uncertain, but rather ‘yahal’ hope is the solid ground of expectation for the righteous.” *
Again, David shares, “Be strong and take heart all you who hope (yahal) in the LORD…” (Ps. 31:24) Job, the poster child for troubles and waiting … he testifies boldly “Though he slay me, yet I will hope in Him” (Job 13:15)
Can not stop there … “And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.” (Romans 5:5)
Folks, whether we are in a season of painfully waiting, or our waiting is full of hope, there is something here for us. It says “But God remembered Noah …” (Gen. 8:1) God put Noah in the Ark, to preserve him, He had a plan for Noah, oh it wasn’t pleasant at times and down right stinky, but God knew … vs. 16 “God said to Noah, Come out …” Or perhaps our scenario is more like David’s, has to wait to see a promise fulfilled. Fulfilled. Or Job … loss, troubles, poor health. Restored.
For some, our stay in the Ark may be longer, don’t jump ship yet … there may be some poo to trudge through, but keep sending those doves, and take heart, God is just allowing us a dry place (hm, could this be a desert?) He is preparing our coming out. Look for those olive branches, they are there. Our ‘this time’ is coming!
What are YOU waiting for?
Pain turning to hope … ‘hope does not disappoint … because God’
In Him, DeDe (Ps. 92:4 “You thrill me, LORD!)
* Quote from the Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (LOVE those geeky books!)
God’s Sticky Fingers
Summer. A season of beautiful lawns, luscious productive gardens, colorful blooming flowers, and sitting on the back deck in the cooling evening breeze. With these long awaited benefits comes … responsibility. I know, ick. (Stop reading NOW, and you won’t be held accountable ~ kidding)
Most benefits require responsibility. The garden needs watering, and weeding. We 
water the flowers, know the plant well, giving it correct placement in the yard, shade, or full/partial sun. Then, for a healthy continuing blooming process comes, ‘dead heading.’ No, this does not mean slapping your neighbor along side the head, no matter how obnoxious they are!
The Gardener’s Network, defines dead heading as “Snipping, pruning, pinching, cutting or using any other means to remove spent blooms.” There are great benefits of this process, or might I say, menial task. It promotes new flower growth, extends the reproductive life cycle of the plant, and prevents the plant from wasting valuable energy on a stem that will no longer blooms, energy is then spent on the health of the plant and new blooms (or fruit). Ever ‘feel’ any of these action words done on YOU … snipping, pruning, pinching and cutting?
My mom and Gardener, Aunt Mona (everyone should have an Aunt Mona) taught me how to dead head. Mona owned and puttered around in a plant nursery. She could NOT walk through one of her green houses without touching the plants, and they were beautiful!
There are two plants I dislike dealing with, those are marigolds (they stink). When pinching the marigold the seeds found in the old blooms often go scattering about, before you know it, you have baby marigolds dancing around your feet. The other is the petunia they are STICKY! It has a defense system of a sap that flows from the stem to the petals. You may want to wear gloves for this little gem, your fingers will get sticky. Yet, stinky and sticky, both these plants have the potential to be FULL of bright colored blooms and can last the whole summer.
Jesus shares in John 15, He is the vine, the Father is the Gardener. “He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even MORE fruitful” (verse 2, emphasis mine) God the Father, the Gardener of our lives.
He is not bothered by the stinky or sappy sticky defense systems we have set up, or the 
crunchy ugly spots here or there. He enjoys the hands on, must touch approach! The Gardener desires to have us fruitful, luscious, beautiful and healthy. To be and do so, takes snipping, pruning, pinching, cutting or any other means to remove the spent blooms. Who knows, that snip here, cut there, although painful at times, may cause a scattering of seeds, that in turn causes a new birth in and around you.
May we all have a God’s sticky fingers all over us, week!
In Him, DeDe (Ps. 92:4 “You thrill me, LORD…”)
Happy Birthday !
Happy Birthday America! “O say can you see by the dawns early light…” (sing it with 
me!) The United States of America is officially 233 years old today. Just like any nationally declared holiday, it has slipped from it’s original meaning to the commercialized display of self centered wonder.
Christmas, the birth of Jesus to Santa Claus and presents. Easter, the death and resurrection of Jesus to the bunny and candy filled baskets. Thanksgiving, the sharing of thanks and friendship, to turkey, football and over eating.
Today, Independence Day, the birthing of a nation with God Almighty’s favor upon it, to fireworks, beer and the backyard BBQ.
O we may not agree with all that our nation stands for in this current era, or be proud of the decisions made in the name of democracy. But may we not forget the years rolled out behind us of those who followed whole heartedly their convictions, standing up for freedom, for justice. Mostly for the ability to read our Bibles, pray, and say the name of Jesus without the fear of a gun shot ringing out.
This nation has STRONG roots in God. Just like the nation of Israel in the Old Testament, we too have wandered away and NEED the loving yet firm words of the Lord over and to us “If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, THEN will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14 emphasis mine) Our nation is not known for ‘humility’ by any means, however each heart rendered individually is God’s desire. Our pride of our country should not over write our humility before God.
Today, as we celebrate, let us not criticize our country (perhaps rightly so on some issues) but share about the favor of God, about the signing of the Declaration of Independence, about our fore fathers who loved and believed in this country. When we 
see the ‘ole red, white and blue’ waving in the breeze, see in our minds eye the uniforms worn, lemonade stands in front yards, Chevrolets and parades of soldiers coming home from battles, wearing bands on their arms of fallen friends. Picture children in school with their hand over their heart reciting “… one nation under God …”
If we humble ourselves … God bless America!
~ DeDe
NOT Lost in the Translation
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We are happy to announce that we now offer different language translations; English, Spanish, French, German and Italian. Please feel free to click on the links to the lower right. Share with your friends and family who may benefit from our heart and writings.
Be Blessed ~
Googling God
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I am amazed at what can be found on the Internet, and at the same time horrified. However, it is an awesome tool if used with wisdom and discretion. One of my favorites to feed my geeky side, is the Greek Interlinear Bible. Oh, now THERE is a fun place to park it for awhile.
With this electronic door, the world seems just a bit smaller, connection bit closer and knowledge a bit more accessible.
I have found through personal experience, folks are ‘googling God’ like never before. This week my own website has hit the 10,000 visits mark. To me this is exciting! Many come to my site by googling a topic I have written about with intent to read articles like The Tabernacle of Moses, or the Names of God. Yet, there are a few who have entered the site not really sure how they landed there. For those too I am grateful and you are so welcome.
Googling God … good Godly guidance.
~ DeDe
A New Word
Check out the new page added to this site. (click on the above tab) Yes, it’s true ~ the geeky side of me got the best of me. I LOVE Hebrew and Greek words, they are so full of imagery. A new word. See also my new site, “Dancing Literary Art” (click on the blog roll to the right of this screen)
Falling to Stand
“A righteous man (woman) falls seven times and rises again But the wicked shall fall by calamity.”
Strong words from Proverbs 24:16, the extra emphasis is mine. Yet I fall, I WILL arise! It is not only a promise but a declaration: The Godly KEEP GETTING UP! There have been times I felt guilt because I did get up, brush myself off and begin to start again, due to philosophies that state: “O you need to stay down for awhile, there is penitence to pay.”
I am in the process of learning the ART (if you will) of “falling”. Yes, the fall is always to be avoided, yet I am human ~ of a fallen race. There is purpose, and there is a lesson to learn in my mis-steps in this walk called life before God.
This verse displays the difference between the Godly person who falls and that of the ungodly. At a quick glance it states they both fall, which is true BUT it is HOW they fall that makes ALL the difference (apologies to my editor, I really NEED to emphasize here with all the capital letters.)
The author of Proverbs paints an outstanding picture; he actually uses two different words to describe the ‘fall’. The righteous man falls as to prostrate oneself, literally meaning as to present, (in the Hebrew). One example of this is found in 2 Chronicles 20:18 “Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the LORD.” We ARE going to make mistakes, poor choices WILL flow from our heart and mind, yet while we are in the midst of picking ourselves up, and being ‘picked up’ we are God honoring. Getting up with God! Our ‘rising’ is to stand, and stand again.
The wicked man described here faces a completely different scenario; the person was in the wrong, is in the wrong and has no intention of leaving the wrong. His fall means he falters, stumbles, is weak, and conveys a very negative failing. Literally he is down and choosing to stay down. His is a lifestyle of sin. There is no reaching out, taking the hand of God and surrendering in such a way as to be picked up. May I offer ~ they are so bound up, that there is no making room for God in their life. How sad.
“Seven times”, is it odd that the writer chose the number that runs throughout the bible emphasizing perfection/completion? I think it was dead on – could it mean that there comes a time and place that we AGAIN have run the process out, (aware of sin before God, grieve, repent, accept His love, grace and mercy). NOW is the PERFECT timing – in which we get up!
“The righteous man/woman falls…” Yes, EVEN those who are right before God, those who deeply desire God and God stuff they fall and will fall. There is no shame in it. In every account of human history (ONLY with the exception of Jesus the God man) do I see fallible mankind. We all have some form of weakness – failure that keeps our name listed among humanity. Abraham, Moses, Isaac, Jacob, David and Paul, John and Peter. Got to love Peter, to who was stated “Upon your confession, ‘You are the Christ the Son of the Living God’, will I build My church” – Jesus. (I paraphrase)
This man Peter was the most honest in his humanity of all in my opinion. His mouth ran ahead of his thoughts. He felt the grief of openly denying Jesus. Yet he was Peter and Jesus LOVED him and trusted him with the God stuff. THAT speaks volumes.
Though I am a Godly woman, I will make mistakes, fail – BUT I will arise! NOT in my own strength, but when I reach out and take Jesus’ hand and He pulls me up, while looking in His eyes, He is smiling!
It is in HOW we fall. Are we going to stay down? Or arise?
Falling to stand. AGAIN and AGAIN. God is so terribly GOOD isn’t He?
In Him, DeDe (Ps. 92:4 “You thrill me, LORD …”)
Inspired Fountain 