Salty Zebra

“Come now, and let us reason together,” says the LORD, Isaiah 1:18a   I am an empath. I feel things others feel, deeply. I have learned to use this gift from God to connect with people and I have had to learn how to create healthy boundaries around myself to keep myself safe and sane. Often this has come in the form of avoiding the news, and sometimes social media, especially during election cycles. I feel intensely the things that are spoken by others, and it affects me in more ways that you could imagine.   With the change in administration on January 20th, there has been a flood of news. On the first day of his term alone, President Trump signed 26 executive orders that significantly affect our country. I didn't want to read 26 executive orders. I didn't want to puzzle through their meaning or the implications they might have on the future of our country. I wanted to hide in a hole. I wanted my husband to filter things for me and just tell me what I needed to know. I s...

“Yes even now,” the Lord says, “return to me with all your heart – with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Tear your hearts, not just your garments.” Return to the Lord your God for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to anger and boundless in loyal love – often relenting from calamitous punishment.   Joel 2:12-13  My mom tells a story about when she was a young girl. She and her brother often got into trouble together. When they were caught, they were sent to their rooms to await punishment. When her father came in to talk with her about what she had done wrong and met out her discipline, typically in the form of spankings, she was stoic. Whether or not she said she was sorry I’m not sure, but she did not demonstrate a heart of repentance. When he had finished with her, her father would move on to her brother’s room. Before he even opened the door, he could hear her brother crying in there. Was he crying because he got caught? Was he crying because he was afraid of t...

This mural, called "Tragic Prelude" by it's artist, John Steuart Curry, depicts firebrand Kansas abolitionist John Brown. Behind him are the devastations to come to the state. Get dressed and lament, you priests. Wail, you who minister at the altar. Come, spend the night in sackcloth, you servants of my God, because no one brings grain offerings or drink offerings to the temple of your God anymore. Announce a holy fast; proclaim a sacred assembly. Gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land to the temple of the Lord your God, and cry out to the Lord.   Joel 1:13-14  National sin. This is a concept that I was mostly unfamiliar with and gave very little thought to until recently. It’s not a new concept though, it goes back to Genesis, back to the beginning of nations.   What is National sin? According to the Bible Hub it is, “the collective transgressions of a nation or people group against God's commandments and moral laws.” Basically, it is t...

Warning: I get a little outside of my standard writing style in this post. As my husband says, I am usually "flowery" and subtle in the way I present things. Today I'm being brutally real.     I've mentioned lots of times on this blog the fact that I have Ehlers-Danlos Syndromes (EDS), but I thought that today I would share a little of what that means to me. It's hard to know how to communicate this to people who don't share my experience. For example:  I am never not in pain. Do I take pain meds? Yes. I take a great deal of pain meds. But no, they don't take my pain away. What they do is (sometimes) take my pain down to a level where I am able to function. My daily functioning pain level is more than many people will experience in a year. Is it easier for me to deal with pain because I am so used to it? No. No, it is not. In fact, the ongoing, constant, chronic pain builds on top of itself over and over and makes it MORE difficult to deal with. I just do...

 Cruising in a wheelchair, or a scooter, or any wheeled device can be the best way to get out and see the world! Yes, there will be challenges, but is there anywhere that is totally challenge free in a wheelchair? Ok, Disney doesn't count. That's a magical place! Anyways, cruise ships, especially those from the major players (Norwegian, Carnival, Holland America, Royal Caribbean, Disney, etc), especially the newer ones are specially designed to accommodate handicapped travelers. A significant portion of their customer base requires some sort of mobility aid, so they are very aware of the needs of travelers and do their best to make your vacation wonderful. As I mentioned, though, there will be challenges and today's post seeks to help you be aware of and find your way around them.    Cruise ships are getting bigger and bigger all the time, with more and more decks. The ship I sailed on last month had 20 decks and I've seen some coming out later this year with as many as...

  However, if you turn aside and do not obey, but are lured away to worship and serve other gods, I declare to you this very day that you will certainly perish! You will not extend your time in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.  Deuteronomy 30:17-18 Say to them, 'As surely as I live, declares the sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but prefer that the wicked change his behavior and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil deeds! Why should you die, O house of Israel?'  Ezekiel 33:11  Over the course of the Old Testament, Israel turned away from God over and over and over again. He had made plain to them the truth, had shown them His love and care for them, and yet they continued to pursue other gods. It wasn’t necessarily a result of long periods of silence from God either. The first time the Israelites rebelled in the wilderness and made a golden calf to worship, Moses was only on the mountain for 47 days , and during t...

 I shared before, but I was blown away by all that God showed me during the last study, Firm Foundations . I was anticipating another start of the year back-to-basics study like I've done several times in my life, but it was definitely NOT that! We started out with a promise from Hebrews: “Now without faith it is impossible to please him, for the one who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”  Hebrews 11:6  I learned that God wants us to not only believe He exists, but also that He will bless us when we seek Him. I learned over the last two months that this is so true . The more I studied about Him, the more I trust Him, the more secure I feel in Him, the more peace I have, the more blessed I am! Over the course of the last two months we explored the nature of God in: the Trinity , God's Holiness , God's love , and God's Justice .  Then we looked at sin: What is sin? , Original Sin , and Human Depravity . We moved on...

  “Do not be anxious about anything. Instead, in every situation, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, tell your requests to God.”  Philippians 4:6 “If you love me, you will obey my commandments.”  John 14:15 “But be sure you live out the message and do not merely listen to it and so deceive yourselves.”  James 1:22  I hate to say it’s a formula, but it’s a formula. When we are anxious or worried about something, the Bible tells us to pray about it. Once we’ve prayed, we’re supposed to obey. Through those things and what God brings about, our faith will be increased. Like I said, a formula. That doesn’t mean it's up to us or we can force God into anything. It means that God has given us promises in His Word and when we obey Him, He meets us there!   When was the last time you were anxious about something? Maybe it was a presentation you had to give at work or a difficult conversation you needed to have with a loved one or wondering what yo...