Salty Zebra

Images generated by Gemini with direction from the author Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob, all the remnant of the people of Israel, you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have carried since you were born. Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you. Isaiah 46:3-4  This has been a heavy week. There has been so much on my heart and mind. I’ve shared much of it with you, but some things will forever be my quiet struggle. As an added challenge, I’m on my fourth migraine in the last week today. How do I keep track when I have so many memory issues? I’ve started putting Mickey Mouse stickers on my calendar for each migraine day 😂 ! You see, I’m a very visual person and when things are represented for my eyes it helps me so much to process and remember them. That’s part of what this post today is about, as you’ll see by the images. I spent a fair amount of time with ...

  He alone is my protector and deliverer. He is my refuge; I will not be upended. Psalm 62:6  This verse seems so simple, so straightforward, and yet it brings up questions, deep concerns in my mind, and then these lead to doubt and shame. Rather than letting things sit there, I’m going to wrestle through them with you. Maybe some of my musings will speak to you. Maybe, at the least, they will encourage you to not shove down doubts and concerns deep into your soul but bring them out to be examined. Our God is not so small that He cannot handle our questions!   My first thought was to the beginning of the verse where it says, “He alone is my protector and deliverer.” This sparked a wondering in my mind as to whether it was inappropriate to do things in our lives to protect ourselves – locking our doors or using a security system, subscribing to insurance to cover harmful situations (home, auto, travel, etc). I even acknowledged that I tend to think of my husband and my...

  From the ends of the earth, I cry to you for help when my heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the towering rock of safety, for you are my safe refuge, a fortress where my enemies cannot reach me. [Psa 61:2-3 NLT]  My husband is a hiker. He goes out into the mountains, usually into the back country where there are few trails and fewer people, and he explores. He loves finding new vistas, beautiful places to camp, quiet coves where he can sit and think. In the hiking world, there’s a concept called a “false summit.” As you’re going along on the trail, you can see the top ahead of you. You keep climbing and climbing, your legs getting weary and the weight of your pack seeming to multiply with each mile, but you can see the end and you’re almost there! But then, just as you approach the goal, you find that it was not, indeed, the top. It was merely an outcropping in the path and you’ve still got quite a ways to go. You’ve been pacing yourself for this summit, and now you don’t kn...

  The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Psalm 34:18  I am so grateful for the truth shared in this scripture and the rest of the suggested reading today. I highly encourage you to read along through Psalm 34:4-10 and 17-18 . I sought the LORD's help and he answered me   How wonderful that we have the Father’s ear, that He deigns to listen to us. Scripture gives us so many examples of people doing this, even Jesus Himself, but I am especially touched this morning by the invitation to do it myself. Seek the LORD’s help and he will answer you. What a privilege! What a wonderful opportunity! He delivered me from all my fears Those who look to him for help are happy; their faces are not ashamed. This oppressed man cried out and the LORD heard; he saved him from all his troubles. The LORD's angel camps around the LORD's loyal followers and delivers them.   The passage doesn’t say that God fixed everything in the a...

Pilgrim's Progress by Douglas Ramsey  Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken. Psalm 55:22  Have you ever read the story Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan? If you have, I wouldn’t be surprised as it is one of the most famous books ever published 1 . It was written while its author was in prison for 12 years because he was a minister operating outside of the state-sanctioned church and tells the story of a man who is tormented by his sins and seeks salvation. Guided by one of the many allegorical characters, Evangelist, he escapes the City of Destruction and faces perils like the Slough of Despond, the Village of Morality and the Enchanted Ground – which were patterned after real places in John Bunyan’s community 1 . In this story, Christian, the main character, carries a burden, a physical manifestation of his inner turmoil representing the weight of sin and guilt that he bore. This burden is with him over the course of ...

  Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. Psalm 119:105  There’s a lot of wisdom in God’s Word, I mean A LOT OF WISDOM. To start with, you have the books of wisdom in the Old Testament: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and the Song of Songs. Then you have the wisdom from Jesus’ teachings and the parables He shared followed by Paul’s exposition on God’s love, grace and how to live our lives in this world. But really, none of it can be taken by itself, none of it was intended to communicate a single truth.   In the books of wisdom, you will find whole poems and insightful tidbits that lead to deeper understanding. I’ve heard it recommended to read a chapter of Proverbs every day of the month (there are 31 chapters), and this practice would certainly bathe you in an aspect of God’s wisdom, but, as I’ll discuss later, it is only one aspect. I think people can get caught up in the deep, profound sayings they read here. God is wise, that is very true, but Go...

  As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things. Ecclesiastes 11:5  I’m a researcher at heart. There is very little I take at face value. Trust, but verify. I want to know your sources. Did you just hear that on TikTok or is there an actual study to back that up? And when it comes to studies, are we talking a long-term study with thousands of participants, or a case study with one or two?   In 2024 I faced a quandary. According to the scans, my tumor had grown by more than 20%, perhaps as much as 50%. I was being referred to the brain tumor center for further treatment because it was in a location that, at that time, was deemed inoperable. At my first visit, I met with an ARNP who would oversee my care, a neuro oncologist that would discuss chemotherapy options (there weren’t any for my type of tumor), and a neuro radiologist that would discuss radiation treatmen...