Deeper Furrow

                                                                                       For His Purpose      My daughter cut her right hand on a broken glass while doing dishes today.  She received immediate medical help by technicians and a first aid kit.  Bandage on and tears stopped, she commenced to eating lunch with her non-dominant hand.      Batter up!  Today, Grandpa and Dad took over the dish routine.  Many glass glasses awaited their turn in the soapy plunge.   Plastic glasses, also aligned, took their place in the moderate deluge.  I was reminded about God.  He makes a difference.  Praise God.  He knows His own.    ...

  His Promise “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13   “And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the Lord.” And to Abram: “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” “Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the LORD.” “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be delivered, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.” “That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:”   This hope is written on my mother’s gravestone.   I seek to honor her...

  The Calling Of Motherhood      Not an easy job, cause its more than a job.   When the timeclock ends, they are there way past the bell.   God will reward.   He will give favor.   For those that nurture in hope, His eye is upon.   Do not think your efforts go unnoticed.   He sees your dedication.   He knows your plight.      Child rearing is just that.   As pigs in the pasture, they must be corralled by force at times.   Stubborn noses dig and thrust uprooting all that is made in order.   So are children in their vile natures.   Shepherd of the sheep?   No, farmer in the mud.      They take.   They laugh.   They break.   They call for another.   Mothers in mercy take punches, not throwing it back at them.   They come to challenge your resolute.   The trials they produce show and refine your character.   Failing, crossing y...

  I Miss Her      Coming to the flatscreen once again that my words may encourage me, I seek to understand my ailment.   Emotional flatlining has gotten me kicking the can wondering if I am wanted.   My condition is new to this time, but I have experienced it before.      It’s a sunken, hollow feeling.   Like a caged mold holds up my existing being.   I am the sum of my works but warmth has left.   A shell having only use for what I can perform.   Papyrus as a wasp nest, fragile in its structure.   A boot threatens to squash it.      I am a chemically driven man.   Under the care of a psychiatrist, my feelings are in manual mode.   Many  pills undergird my helm.   Others calm the waves.   Even others congeal the cold waters that they do not lap my sides.   Yet, the air breezes across my bow.   A sun is hidden and clouds hide warmth once enjoyed. ...

  What I Need      Kickstart the Harley.   It’s a cold morning out these windows.   Grandpa’s fuel has gotta pop if his keister is gonna go.   So I wait. John 4:34  “ Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. ”      God’s will fueled Jesus’ tank.   Vision shown and purpose realized, He launched out.   Carrying Him out of the confines and into the streets, another day of telling it like it was.   What He saw His Father doing, He simply walked out in it.      Is God preparing my way today?   More than simply existing, will I impact sending His influence streaming out?   Little ones surround my feet.   Others steer about me.   I make decisions and guide accordingly.   If I have no purpose to this day, I might as well not rise from this chair.      An understanding, Lord.   Give me ...

  The Just Shall Live By Faith      “Show me your faith without works, and I’ll show you my faith by my works.”   Yah, he was a famous guy.   Both the one who said it and the one who lived it.   Abraham offered his son.   Rahab hid the spies.   Noah built his ark.   The proof was in the pudding and the writer of James wanted us to know we have to put wheels on our faith if it is to be good for anything.      Oh, you believe in God?   Even the devils believe, and tremble.   So, it is not enough to confess, “I believe in God.”   Our actions have to prove it.   But how do we in the Twenty-first century live it out?   When money is a safety and our society knows order, we walk a similar walk of the world.   How do we stand out?   Wreckless living.      To love without expecting return.   And again, to love without expecting return.   This world is...

  And Where Were You?      My best friend’s mother took her own life.   We were in high school at the time.   It came as a surprise, kind of.   Her previous attempt was unsuccessful, so she tried again.      Suicide can do weird things to a family.   Question marks float in the air sometimes never being resolved.   Guilt can come and rest on shoulders.   Plausible answers temporarily cover the shame.   “Oh, there must have been something wrong.”   Mummers about the town as you feel the starting eyes.   One question:   Where is God in all this?      Pain can convince us that He has left.   Somehow His presence is sucked away and clouds are left about our heads.   Truth is, His temple is not based on our feelings.   If our feelings gave Him substance, then He would not be much of a god.      He lives out of our reality not to be mani...

  I Am Not Ashamed Luke 9:26  “ For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, and of the holy angels. ”      No, not of that Man.   I will not shrink back into a hole embarrassed because my peers look upon me with disbelief.   What is genuine will be shown.   Want to know what makes this man tick?   Listen to the words of his mouth then watch the action of his hands.   I will not be ashamed.   Not after what He has done for me.      Do I have to rehearse to feel it again?   I picture a cross and a bloody piece of meat staked to it.   If I cannot identify with that, I fool myself.   I know the wickedness inside me and how my Savior liberated me to be another, another like Him.      Peace on the home front.   Respect in the workplace.   The capacity to s...

  Long Shot      It was a dream.   We were at Grandpa Bob’s house in the backyard on the grass.   I had been given a name.   Etsby.   Finding it in a resource, the name made sense.   This morning on Google search, it does not.   However, Estby is a Scandinavian surname meaning eastern village.   Being part Norwegian myself, this found its place home.   As a Christian, Christ comes into His future temple from the east.   So prophetically, Estby ties together two meanings.   However, Etsby continues to be the correct spelling given.   And that is the enigma He sometimes works in.      My son and his wife are expecting.   We take names seriously.   His name, an Old Testament prophet, suffered for telling the truth.   His name given at a special time our family’s sensitive time overseas.   Like a bright light shown on the darkest day of the year.   God works that ...

  What God Says About Beer      Not a lot.        I mean, Budweiser is not in my Bible.   What did He say about Bacardi mixers?   Was God ignorant of present man’s inventions of alcohol?   Maybe all could be summed up with this command.   “Keep your brain.”      Crack and meth are seen as bad boys.   Their ability to alter the mind are immediate and severe.   Hence, the government steps in to regulate by forbidding.   Alcohol, on the other hand, is permitted as a balancing act.      Prohibition was not a success.   It just showed people are willing to fight, and pay for, the right to cruise about society in gatherings.   Face it, people have a lot of fun and lay down many burdens at the doors of pubs and bars.   So, does God have a beef with the barley?      He has given us our minds as command centers.   Choices w...

  Bicuspid Genesis 2:24  “ Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. ”      The Chiefs lost last night, but that didn’t stop my victory at home.   Laying leisurely on our living couch, my boots up on the piano bench and my head rested upon the one I love.   Grandkids climbed about her while I shared a part of her attention.      Touch can mean so much.   It tells you that you are not alone.   We have weathered the last months of my knee recovery and together we will progress on.   A cusp is a point of transition.   Climbing the mountain, we can take flight and soar.   All I know, we will be together as we have walked the last months.      In and out of doctors’ offices.   Time spent waiting and talking.   Our adventure took us to the pinnacle.   To see a promised land?   Maybe to fe...

  Who She Was      Marsha Jan Helgerson.   Born January 31, 1948.   For those who come after me, I seek to honor my mother as scripture commands.   But for me, it is not hard to do.      I have affectionate memories of my mother.   She was of the nurturing type, careful and supportive, gentle with hand and soft spoken to me her only son.      I wish you could have met her here.   I think she would be proud of you.   Daughters that grow up to be fine women and sons that mature to be handsome in stature.       Many birthday parties and holidays, her presence was missed.   I am sad to say her wisdom was lost, never given a voice nor a pen.   Pictures only tell of her acquaintances.   Caught between pages on the shelf, memories are infrequently unfolded.      We have the responsibility to rehearse her character now, but my mind fades...

  On The Horizon      You know we’ve been waiting for Jesus to return for almost 2,000 years.    Seems rather silly that a major world religion would put its faith in its next occurrence.   I looked out my kitchen window this morning around 5:00 a.m.   I saw light coming from a hidden sun.   Being February, its rise was not for another two plus hours.   I was early.   It was not late.      I did not ask to be born at this time.   My choosing did not put me at 1970.   However, the events that circle my life have defined reality constructing the framework of my reasoning.   So, I look back at what I have known.   The future eludes me and I at best conjecture.      How will He come… He has told plainly.   In the clouds, with angels, and with a great announcement.   He will come suddenly and at His Father’s will.   We will not expect Him.   That i...

  The Self-Help Checkout Lady      Perhaps it doesn’t get any more complicated than this.      “Oh, I remember your advice about using alcohol to clean my skin,” I said.      “Yep, I use hand sanitizer to clean a lot of things.   Fixes things.   Wish I could fix my car heater with it.   Only blows cold air.”      “Ok, thanks.”   And out the doors I went.      “It’s about 20 degrees outside, Lord,” I prayed while I sat in my car.   “Did I miss it?”      Did I miss an opportunity to meet an immediate need?   Maybe she didn’t need her car fixed, not by me.   But I could have reminded her that someone cared.     

  What Is Doctrine?      “We hold these truths to be self-evident…”   Well, sometimes.   Stepping over the threshold of the visiting church, we meet smiling eyes and warm hands.   The usher hands us a bulletin and we take our seat in the pew.   Joy fills the air.   Announcements make sense.   Worship songs are unique and flavorful.   The pastor takes the podium.   In the middle of the sermon, a small voice cues.   A slight twinge.   We search the bulletin for answers.   Deeper into the message has us wondering what we are doing there.   Service concludes and we make a hasty retreat to the parking lot.      It pays to do your research before engaging a church in worship.   One question.   What do they worship?   Assumptions sink the ship.   All churches do not think as you do.   In fact, denominations have peculiarities that draw party lines stronger than ...

  Methylparaben 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act.   The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) of 1938 The FDA established regulations for nutrition labeling in 1973.  The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990      I confess to be a nutrition label reader.   Right there in the bread aisle, I’m in a frozen stance wondering what the chemicals will do to me.   Approved by a governmental authority for this food substance to enter my body, I trust?        America would not have its citizens be ignorant.   F urnished with info to make logical decisions, we grab from the shelf and throw them in our trunks.   Home finds groceries to the counter and into the fridge.   At mealtimes, we assemble as in a chem lab.   Great synthesizers, we combine ingredients to cook up, lasagna?        After s hoving foods down the stack, our stomachs wonder in disbelief.  It...

  Wichita      Man, doesn’t this get complicated!   The indigenous peoples of the Wichita tribe were said to be caught up in animism.   Descended from Japheth, certainly they strayed far from the true source of life. Warped beliefs got them worshipping rocks, trees, and regarding all sacred having a soul.   It doesn’t stop there.   What did they do with their children?   Sacrifice?   I don’t know.   I didn’t bother to investigate.   I heeded the warning.   Revelation 2: 24  But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan , as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden.      Some things aren’t worth checking out.   Darkness is only a vacuum demanding more and enticing wasted efforts in understanding.   What profits in time spent away from the Word?   Yes, not all reading sources need t...