THE NEW EWE

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"

Luke 15:4-6

October 20, 2021

LIFE IN THE FOLD:

When I was probably 11-12 years old, my Grandma Horton discovered canned tuna. My grandpa had passed away when I was 10, and I know that it was at some point after that. It probably made a quick meal for her that she didn't have to cook.

The problem wasn't that she ate tuna; but what she did with the cans after opening them. For some odd reason, instead of tossing the can and lid in the trash can, she would toss them out the back door of her kitchen. The only plausible reason I can come up with, is that she didn't like the fishy smell in her kitchen that the cans left behind.

At that time, Daddy (who was her oldest son) was doing most of her mowing for her. Sometimes if he was working and didn't have time, one of my sisters would mow for her. I, personally, only remember mowing for her maybe once or twice. If one of my uncles happened to be there when the yard needed mowed, they may have mowed occasionally, too; I can't remember the details.

Grandma throwing those tuna cans and lids out her backdoor was a thorn in my dad's side! He may have picked them up for her a time or two, before mowing, when grandma first started doing that. He talked to her and asked her not to throw those cans and lids outside. His biggest concern was that one of us girls would be mowing and not see one of those lids with the sharp edges, would run over it with the mower, and it would fly up and hit us and cut us.

He asked her a few times to stop doing that, but for whatever reason, she refused to do so. Finally, he gave up and told us not to mow that back corner of the house and to go around it. I remember it getting overgrown with tall weeds and being filled with lots of tuna cans and lids. It looked like a good place for snakes to hide out! Grandma apparently didn't mind the mess.

If grandma didn't like the smell of the tuna cans, after opening them, there were alternatives other then tossing them outside in the grass. She could have set a grocery bag or trash can or empty box outside the door to throw them in. But she chose not to do so, and ended up with an overgrown mess outside her back door.

Sometimes we can have something in our life that is stinky. Other people may notice and mention it to us, trying to help us. But we disregard anything that anyone tells us and continue on with the same stinky behavior, attitude, or way of thinking. We may think that it's none of their business what we do! We aren't hurting anyone. We may even think, "Out of sight, out of mind." After all, it's our own backdoor that we are tossing our personal "garbage" out of. No one has any business poking around back there looking, and if it doesn't bother us, why should it bother them.

But weeds will take root, grow up and take over. We may think that they are hiding the stench and ugliness of whatever it is that we are dealing with, but really, we are only adding to the problem by not taking care of it. It gives the old serpent, the devil, more coverage for sneaking around in our lives. We begin not to notice or care that instead of dealing with only one issue, we've ended up with an entire weed patch filled with empty cans with sharp edges. It can not only damage us, but can cause harm to others who come near us. What started out as one "little" sin, multiplied inso something more invasive and stinky.

After a while, we may feel overwhelmed, as if there is no hope. We try to figure out how to clean up our mess by ourselves, but end up giving up. The truth is, we can't do it alone. We can't be good enough, strong enough, or smart enough to figure out how to clean our life up. We need the blood of Jesus! Jesus can and will cleanse and forgive. He can wash away all sin, bad attitudes, ungodly habits, judgmental and critical inclinations, etc. Whatever it may be, Jesus makes all things new! He makes us new! His blood is powerful!!

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

Also, things with sharp edges can be used for both good or bad. The lids seal the cans so that the tuna stays fresh and edible and won't spoil. They serve an important purpose. Using a can opener to get the lid off was necessary in order to get to the fish in order to eat it.

Grandma tossing those lids into a trash can would have assured that no one got cut or hurt. It wasn't the lids fault if someone got hurt; but would have been the fault of whoever was irresponsible in disposing of them.

Sharp knives are a good thing to have in the kitchen when cooking. It's hard to cut potatoes, vegetables, meat or whatever with a dull knife. You end up sawing away at it. But having a knife with a sharp blade needs the user to be responsible and watch what they are doing.

I've been in a hurry when cooking and sliced my finger with a sharp knife. But I've also got the prep work done in half the time by having good, sharp knives.

Our tongue and words can be sharp -- in both good and bad ways. They can be filled with the power of God and bring about healing, goodness and kindness. On the other hand, a sharp tongue can have the opposite affect and cut, hurt, and cause pain.

Proverbs 25:18 says, "Like a club, a sword, or a sharp arrow is one who bears false witness against his neighbor."

James chapter three speaks about how our words, our tongue can be used for both good or evil. Verse 8 says, "But no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison."

The following verses say that with our tongue we bless the Lord; but we also curse people, who are made in the image of God. Verse 10 says, "From the same mouth comes blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, these things should not be." The following verse says that a spring doesn't pour out fresh and bitter water from the same opening.

God gave us a tongue and language for a purpose. But it's up to us to be responsible with our words and how we use our tongue.

Proverbs 27:17 says, "As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend."

We can't sharpen our friends and make them better and stronger if we toss our words and opinions and attitudes without thought. If we speak whatever comes to mind and are critical and opinionated, without thought of their feelings, then we can end up cutting them and causing hurt.

I know that Grandma didn't throw those tuna cans and sharp lids out her back door to try and cause hurt to Daddy or one of her granddaughters. It was not her intent to cause harm and pain. If one of us had got cut and had to get stitches, she would have felt bad. But for whatever reason, she failed to take responsibility in order to assure that didn't happen. Perhaps she thought that we could pick them up, if we didn't want them there. She may have thought that we were old enough to watch where we were mowing, so it would be our fault if we should run over a sharp lid that flew up and hurt us. I honestly don't know. But my opinion is that she was only thinking of herself and the strong fishy smell that the tuna cans left in her kitchen, so she chose to toss them outside onto the ground.

Let's be sharp for Jesus in all the best ways possible. I could recap the lessons within this devotional, but I want you to think about it and allow the Holy Spirit to reveal to you if you are guilty of having stinky "tuna cans with sharp edges" in your life. If so, ask Him to remove them, then be willing to be responsible in cleaning up your life and words and thoughts.

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

Growing up, I got sick of hearing "Because I said so." So, if I try to tell some kid not to do something, I usually give a good reason why, something like "You could climb that tree, but those limbs look pretty thin. If one broke, it sure would hurt when you fall." Sometimes, that's enough; sometimes not.

I have one particular nephew who would always look at me, tip his head a little and grimace, "That wouldn't happen." He was always convinced that if it was bad, it couldn't happen to him. Even if I said someone else might cause the accident, he was always convinced it couldn't possibly go wrong.

Loretta's grandmother may have thought the same thing. No matter how many times Doyal told her that it could get someone hurt, she may have thought he was just being silly and easily worried.

I've known people who love spreading rumors. They feel the same way. They excuse it by claiming that they are just telling truth, so it's okay and shouldn't hurt anyone. They think it couldn't possibly go wrong. But honestly, when I hear rumors, I feel like it is already going wrong. I don't want to hear it.

ON THE MENEWE:

Apple Cider

Press the allspice and cloves into the orange slices.

Add all of the ingredients to a large pan.

Bring to a boil, then simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

This past Sunday evening I was babysitting my nephew's kids while he and his wife went out on a date. While there, I got a text from Jon that said, "Guess what I found?" There was an empty gray circle. I sent an emoji of a lady shrugging. Jon tried to resend something and it was once again just an empty gray circle. I let Jon know and he told me that he had tried to send two pictures. He then said that he would show me when I got home. I was curious on what he had found and was trying to send me pictures of. Jon restarted his phone, then sent the pictures once again. It was a possum lying underneath the tree right in front of our house! I texted and asked Jon if it was dead. His response was, "It is now. If it wasn't already, it did an amazing act. I buried it." Jon was just kidding and when I arrived home told me that it was apparent that the possum had been there for a while, because it was stiff. Jon had walked next door to talk to our neighbors, who were outside. When he was walking back to our house, he spotted the dead possum laying underneath the tree. Not what he was expecting to see!

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

Don't believe everything you think. - Andy Andrews

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org