TEA TIME by Glynis M. Belec

I laughed my head off when I read the boxes. The packaging was more than pretty and the box beautifully made. A perfect exterior. A delightful and alluring presentation.

The variety of tea that beckoned me to sample was lovely. The Black Tea Chai, spicy and warming, had kept its promise earlier today, as outlined on the back of the cute triangular box. The Lemongrass, Ginger and Citrus did refresh my palate for a mere moment this afternoon.

I was enjoying this thoughtful gift.

Then I looked at the Slim Me tea. I admit I laughed at the title but took the bait.

Sure enough, the written word on the box indicated that if I incorporated this invigorating infusion into my calorie controlled diet, it would aid me in reaching my ‘mini me’ goals. Ha!

I just had to read the Detox Me box. Another wild promise. It was going to cleanse me through and through for a better me.

I tried them both later in the day. Nothing. I didn’t have a cookie with my tea but still no weight loss. What? But it said if I cut back on calories the magic tea would work.  And as far as the Detox Me, flavour of the evening, no change. But they promised one little teabag would make a difference. And, poof. Nothing. What’s with that?

As I contemplated the Revive Me or Oolong next, it occurred to me how fed up I get with false promises in the world (not that I thought for one moment my lovely tea would do anything in the big picture of my life.) The world is full of charm and deceit. Not a surprise. A nice analogy at best.

Sipping away on the Oolong, I felt no sun pampering or sauna-like experience. The Revive Me was nice to the palate but it sure didn’t put a spring back into my step.

I kept sitting and sipping and thinking. I thought about the new year and resolutions and my own un-kept promises in the past.  I thought about the changes in my life and the goals I need to make for 2016.

Specific goals, it has been said, are the best. Instead of saying I am going to write more, say, I will write at least 500 words a day and journal every other night.

Instead of saying I am going to read the Bible more, I will say, I will read a chapter a night starting from Genesis.

Instead of saying I am going to be kinder, I will say, I will bite my tongue when I want to lash out trying to prove my brilliance.

Instead of saying I will love deeper, I will say I love you more often and make sure my words match my actions.

Instead of saying I will help newbie writers more, I will say, I will get in touch with my new writer friends and offer some helpful tips, taking time to really listen without monopolizing the conversation.

I am hoping, planning, praying that my actions will speak louder than words on a teabox. But I know the only way that will happen is if I lean on the Lord for strength and direction.

 

I’m feeling deep in my soul that this just might be the year that it becomes less about me and more about Him.

Look at that. I already feel a spring in my step! And no tea. I’m thinking I might drink in a little more of that Sweet Revival. This infusion seems to be working.

                                        ****

And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.  Habakkuk 2:2-3 

PRESS ON by Lynda Schultz

“Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.” (Hosea 6:3)

I don’t remember ever having read this verse before, though surely I must have. This morning it speaks clearly, like a rainbow on the edge of a storm. I long for revival. The closer I come to Him the more I realize how much more I want, and need, of Him in my own life. As I weep for myself, I weep for the church and pray that the people who are called by God’s name will seek Him, will make Him THE priority on every level.

As I reflected on the verse, I decided to look up the word “acknowledge.” The results of my search were appropriate to Hosea’s message to Israel and our need today:

1. admit, accept, grant, allow, concede, accede to, confess, own, recognize.
2. greet, salute, address; nod to, wave to, raise one's hat to, say hello to.
3. express gratitude for, show appreciation for, thank someone for.
answer, reply to, respond to.

The attitudes expressed by these words should characterize our relationship to God. They give weight to what Solomon says in Proverbs 3:6: “in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” To ignore God is to suffer the dangers inherent in walking crooked paths.

Hosea tells us to “press on,” to keep insisting in this acknowledgment of God, even when the situation seems desperate. In Hosea’s world, Israel was thriving materially, but had wandered far, far away from God. His own life became an illustration of the unfaithfulness of God’s people. He was called upon to take the unusual step of marrying a woman who would not keep her marriage vows. In the end, Hosea had to buy her back out of a local slave market. He must have had many moments when he wept over his relationship with his wife, and despaired over Israel’s relationship with her God. Some have called Hosea “the prophet with the broken heart.”

However, Hosea’s own life also illustrates the heart and hope encapsulated in this verse. Just as he rescued and forgave his wife and kept his part of their marriage covenant, so God would do the same for His people. Hosea’s faith shines through as he insists on acknowledging the Lord despite the bleakness of the circumstances. He urges his listeners to “press on” in their relationship to God. He knows that just as he went to Gomer’s aid and offered her incredible love and forgiveness, so God would come and show those same mercies to Israel.

This promise remains current. Many in the Northern Hemisphere are enjoying the renewal of life as spring comes once again. Just as the spring rains herald renewal in the physical world, so God will come and bring revival, restoration, and renewal, to our spiritual world.

Don’t despair. Acknowledge Him. Press on in worship and intercessory prayer. Like the sunrise, He will come.