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Merry Kris Children Stories for Adults |
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The Basketball and
the Tea Cup
Out of many a lovely cup have I
sipped upon a soothing bit of tea. Sometimes just the ceremony of
getting out the good china cups and a nice china tea pot is
relaxing. Boil the water, heat the pot, insert the type of tea
desired; set the tea cups on the tray, include the teaspoons, slice
some lemons; place the linen napkins, put the honey on the side, and
wait until the tea is steeped to the right strength. It’s time to
find a quiet spot to curl up or perhaps it’s time to share a few
precious moments with a good friend. My Great Aunt Charlotte left
me her collection of English tea cups. There are no two alike.
Each has a beautiful floral painting on both the saucer and the
cup. China tea cups are fragile and must be handled with care so as
not to break them. They were made for just that purpose—a cup of
tea.
Out in the garage, on the other
hand, we have a rough and ready basketball. Ken and Jamie have
spent several sunny afternoons playing basketball. Ken taught Jamie
how to dribble a basketball. Bounce, bounce, bounce the ball goes
on the concrete. She pauses for the shot and flings the ball into
the air hitting the backboard! The ball slides neatly through the
net only to be caught and bounced steadily round the court as the
next person prepares for his shot. Basketballs were meant to be
bounced on hard floors. That’s their purpose. That’s what they
were made for.
Like basketballs and tea cups God
made each of us for a specific purpose. We would no more try to
pour tea onto a basketball and serve it than we would bounce a fine
china teacup on a concrete slab under a basketball hoop. So why is
it that we aren’t as attentive to the purpose that God has created
for us? Is it possible that we get caught up in maintaining a
lifestyle for the sake of this world instead of seeking that which
God has created us to do? Each of us has been given special
abilities and talents, unique gifts from God, especially for our
personal use in our relationship with others. It says in the first
book of Peter,
| “God has given each of you some special abilities;
be sure to use them to help one another, passing on to others
God’s many kinds of blessings,” I Peter 4:10 |
Yes, it seems to me that when I give my
attention to becoming what God intended me to be instead of trying
to be something or someone else; I’m less likely to feel broken—like
a teacup smashed on concrete. I’m more likely to smile knowing that
I am being used for the purpose God created me to be. In this there
is peace.
Merry Kris Demske |
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What Does God Have to do with Bazooka Bubble
Gum?
 Many
years ago, when I was a child, I remember peddling my bicycle to the
local general store. Excitedly entering the door with my hand
clutching some small change, I would breathlessly race over to the
old wooden check out counter and gaze at the delicious candy
treasures gleaming colorfully in their shiny wrappers like an
endless field of bright poppies in summertime.
At that time one of my favorite treats was Bazooka
bubble gum. It cost only a penny. In fact, all the candy behind
the counter could be purchased for a penny. But Bazooka bubble gum
was one of my favorites. Within every package was more than the
promise of a tasty chew! As I opened the wrapper and popped the
pink square into my mouth, there would be burst of juicy sweetness.
The more I chewed on that gum, the more it was being prepared to
make great bubbles! Hence, we get the name bubble gum.
The
pleasure did not stop there, however. For such a small investment I
received a comic to read—a short story. Finally, there was always
the lure to save the wrappers! In tiny print was the address to
send away for a catalog full of treasures for which one could trade
the wrappers.
You may
ask, “What does all this have to do with God?” Well, as I consider
that wonderful memory of Bazooka bubble gum, I am taken by the
similarities in it to God’s Word and the promise it holds for us.
When I feed on God’s Word, oftentimes it fills me with sweet bursts
of revelation. The longer I chew on God’s Word the more it
“expands”, like bubbles, in my understanding of His great love for
us and His plan for our lives.
As I looked forward to the short comic in the Bazooka wrapper, so I
look forward far more to the reading of Christ’s short parables, to
the brief yet poignant messages of Proverbs, or to the grounding
depth of heartfelt love God conveys to me even in one short
sentence. “For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures
forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” Psalm 100:5.
Wow! What a promise!
Finally, in Matthew 6:19-21, Jesus tells us:
| Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and
steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where
neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break
in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart
will be also. |
When I was a
child, I thought like a child. Storing up bubble gum wrappers for a
prize that could then be sent for from a far away place was a
wonderful thing on which to hope.
Today, I read God’s Word and place my hope in the Lord. I seek to
place treasures in heaven, hoping one day to be with my Savior
there. When I am loving God and honoring his commandments and when
I am in a righteous relationship with my neighbor I am doing that
which is pleasing to God. I store up treasures by these.
I
haven’t had a piece of Bazooka bubble gum in many years. Perhaps,
there are no longer comics and prizes for which one can send away.
But I have Christ and I have the Word, so I will always have
wonderful sweet bursts of love and revelation. I thank the Lord,
that He is always there with me, always desiring to stretch my
heart, my mind, and my soul just like bubble gum, so that I might be
in a closer relationship with Him.
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The Invitation
- RSVP
| Matthew Chapter 22:2-6: The kingdom of heaven
may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his
son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to
the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent
other slaves, saying, “Tell those who have been invited: Look,
I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been
slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding
banquet. But they made light of it and went away, one to his
farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his
slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. |
| Psalm 119:9-12: How can young people keep their
way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my
whole heart I seek you; do not let me stray from your
commandments. I treasure your word in my heart, so that I may
not sin against you. Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your
statutes. |
On June 23rd and 24th
we moved. As of today, August 11th, I still feel as if
we are moving. Things are not settled yet. Moving, however, has
provided many opportunities to seek my Lord’s guidance and to
delight in His wisdom and blessings.
One such blessing occurred a few
days ago while I was praying early in the morning. What came to
mind was one of the things I had moved. For years I have kept the
documents I have received. I have letters, Christmas cards,
invitations to parties and weddings, funeral notices, thank you
notes and a myriad of other correspondence. Sometimes I find myself
wondering why I continue to keep letters that were written to me in
the early 70s. Are the letters, which I have that my Grandmothers
wrote and their siblings wrote to them in the 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, and
50’s of any significance? Will copies of the correspondence written
by my ancestors in the 1800s while they were traveling by ship to
North America mean anything to anyone a hundred years from now?
What purpose does correspondence
have? As I reflect on the various forms of writing I have received,
I begin to see the path along which my family and I have traveled.
I am able to catch glimpses of history, learn the names of family
members, and begin to understand some of the strengths they had as
well as their failings. I can see some of the pitfalls that
happened to them. I experience their joy in celebrations and their
sadness when a loved one passed away or was severely injured.
Sometimes there are windows of understanding into the simple
patterns of daily living. Then on another page I read the advice of
someone being given to another. Within these various forms of
correspondence there is encouragement, love, hope, sadness, joy,
anger, confusion, steadfastness, promise, and many other expressions
of being.
As I consider my day-to-day
activities, I realize that correspondence plays a key part. I
receive e-mails, letters, invitations, bills, advertisements, and
notices. I read them, because I know that they provide me key
information for daily living. They’re important!
Now consider, does our God not do
the same for us? It is called the Word. Do I look forward with
anticipation to read what God has sent me? There are invitations;
there is history; there are words of guidance, love and so much
more! These words are the most important communications I will ever
receive. Yet, do I treat them that way or am I ambivalent? Am I
more excited to get e-mail from a friend than I am to pick up the
Word of God and read His letter to me? It’s true, the daily
correspondence I receive makes a difference in my life. Obviously,
I enjoy receiving it, because I save it and read it years later.
But where have I put my priorities? That can only be answered by
considering how much time I spend on each form of communication.
This revelation was certainly a wake up call to me to re-examine my
commitments and my priorities. If I love God, if I love His son,
Jesus, do my actions show that? Do I say, “I can’t wait to read
this? It’s a letter to me from God! It’s His Word that really
matters. He’s talking to me. He has something I really need to
hear!” |
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