"Only a Baby?" A poem for Christmas

 

Isn't it intriguing to think about the "what ifs" of the story of the birth of Jesus?  There was so much going on in unseen realms!  Part of the creation-long conflict between God and Satan played out...sometimes behind the scenes, sometimes in plain view.

Read this poem, and think about the wonderment of Messiah's coming, and then the implications if something had "gone wrong".  (Not that it could have, but...what if?)  Under the poem, I will mention one of the more important ones...but I would really enjoy hearing YOUR ideas!

                                             Only a Baby?

                           He's only a Baby, yet His cradle hangs                                                                                just out of reach of the Evil One's fangs.

                           The Devil seeks signs, through eyes cold and hard,                                                            that the Infant's protectors might lower their guard.

                           But, why? He's only a Baby!  Oh...is He, now?                                                                 Then why the red shadow that haunts His brow?

                           Or the nails hovering over His wrists and feet,                                                                    awaiting their moment in Death's defeat?

                           That's why His enemies snap and fume;                                                                            if the Little One wins, their dark plans are doomed!

                            But they'd best beware, those who'd do Him harm!                                                            For He's heir to the power of His Father's arm.

                            He's the Prince of Peace, yet He brings a sword.                                                              He's the Lion cub with heart-piercing roar!

                             The foes in the garden will shriek and moan                                                                       as angels stand ready to roll the Stone.

                                          And we, who with joy hailed the birth of the Son,                                                               watched in awe as their plots were foiled, one by one.

                                          None will ever kill Mercy or sabotage Grace!                                                                None will keep the Messiah from His rightful place.

                                          Eternally royal, His presence alone                                                                                    made the stable a palace, the manger a throne.

                                          Full of wonder we ran; we must worship the Child!                                                          "God is with us!" we cried...and His Father smiled.                                                                                                           

                                                     ************                                             (Becky Rhon)  

Awesome God, indeed!  Now, one of the "what ifs".  The Son of God came to Earth to die, right?  So why was the Devil trying to do away with Him? I mean, He was going to die anyway!  For me, one of the most interesting points is that, had Jesus not survived to adulthood and his ministry years, all of the Old Testament prophecies would have been meaningless!  The predictions of Him riding into Jerusalem on a donkey colt, His death itself, even small details like the fact that men would gamble for His clothing!  So many prophecies, written hundreds or thousands of years before He was even born, were fulfilled exactly, in such a way that it was impossible NOT to identify of Whom they were speaking!

It's obvious that, although God's Son was, indeed, to die, it HAD to happen when God said it had to happen.  Timing!  God had it all worked out, with no mistakes, a perfectly woven plan that had been laid out even before the world was created!  With so very many pieces to the puzzle that HAD to intersect, Satan wanted to steal the central Figure and nip the whole picture in the bud.  He failed, of course!                                                                                                                                                           *************

                                         God is with us!  Worship Him!  

                                   Have a wonderful, blessed Christmas!

                

Is it really a "right"? Looking at it a different way...

 

We can be rather insistent about what WE think should be done and said, can't we?  Decisions can hinge on "rights", preferences, interests. "It's my life, so I get to choose."  I recently came across some thought-provoking statements that view this idea from an angle all too often shoved aside these days.  Let's let our thoughts be "provoked" for a bit, shall we?

"We decide we know what is best for ourselves and those we hold in our power...this life is our proving ground.  This is our time to choose and it is not our 'right' to choose, it is a God-given gift to choose. We choose whether we will offer everything in the temporary world to God in order to gain the Eternal Kingdom."* 

So...we were created with free will, the Creator's "permission", as it were, to decide for ourselves.  But He didn't include it as a "right", as He was under no obligation to add in this precious - yet precarious - capacity. No, it was a gift.  

We don't always choose what is best in God's eyes.  We don't always consider His viewpoint. Out of selfishness? Out of ignorance?  How are we simple mortals supposed to know what He wants, anyway?  (Hint: try asking Him!)

"Call to Me and I will answer you, and tell you great and unsearchable things that you do not know."  (Jeremiah 33:3)

                                                 ***************

When Yeshua came to Earth,  He was in constant contact with his Father, whose instructions to His Son included: "...to proclaim good news to the poor...to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free..."  (Luke 4:18-19) They did NOT say to look after His own "rights" and wants, but to serve others.  He knew what God wanted Him to do, and He chose to obey...

...and  "When they hurled insults at Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats. Instead, He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly."  (I Peter 2:23)

Yes, we want things to be "fair", even if it means taking "justice" into our own hands...or at least giving it a little shove.  But we must be cautious because, as this author says, "We are simply never allowed to stand in the place of the Lord God."* 

                                                

                                                      ************** 

"But my decision makes sense!" we say.  "It's logical!"  And it may well be.  After all,  God is the One who gave us the ability to use our brain!  But we need to be willing to give HIS instructions priority, even when they seem to us to go against "sense" or logic. (Remember, if it makes sense to God, that's enough.  He can be trusted.) 

 We can also base choices on emotions, but should be careful, as "the disordered use of an emotional response can lead us to act contrary to God's will."*  It can also lead to manipulation, politicizing the personal and the sacred, or even weaponizing what we say.  Maybe this is why He made sure that his Word included verses such as:

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain deceit.  Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others."  (Philippians 2:3-4)

"Be careful, however, that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak."  (I Corinthians 8:9)

"If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."  (Romans 12:18)

                                       ***********************

Do we realize that in giving us the gift of "choice", of free will, God was also giving us the capacity to betray Him?  To say "no" to Him?  To disobey Him?                                                     To break His heart?

Can we remember that although we may have "rights", we always have the option of choosing the words, actions, and responses that reflect honor for God and keep our testimony from being tarnished?

"In everything set them an example by doing what is good...show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned."  (Titus 2:7-8)

                               

                                         ************************

Our Savior Yeshua is the only person who did this faultlessly.  Having the advantage of being perfect to begin with, He set the bar as high as it could be set!  But we can aim for it!  He promises us His presence, and places His wisdom and strength at our disposal.  

                       Father, You did not offer us  freedom of choice as a "right".

                       Free will was and is a GIFT.  Please help us use it wisely!

         

                                                    **************

*The Road Goes Ever On: A Christian Journey Through The Lord of the Rings, by A.K. Frailey

(all emphases mine)

Nope, Galápagos tortoise shells don't work for hide-and-seek! (see more photos)

 

There aren't many empty tortoise shells laying around.  (The  Galápagos giants can live over 150 years.)  But a normal-sized person can sort of fit inside them, they are that big!  My granddaughters gave it a try: Liliana (13) in this picture, and Miriam (12) in the next one. 

Of course,  the shells weren't created to accommodate young ladies. They were custom-built to provide the creatures with a hard structure that protects them,  armor that encloses the vital organs and allows the legs and head to retreat into their own personal "bunker".

          I asked the guide which animals prey on                        tortoises.  His answer?                                                "People".                                                                                 *********************

As we walked around the grassy (and muddy!) fields where tortoises ambled slowly, unfazed by the drizzle, the 80-year-old guide shared fascinating information about these enormous creatures, and told me he had worked with some of the early conservation programs for the tortoises on the various islands of the archipelago, starting decades ago.  No wonder he knew so much about them! 

Each island has its own species of tortoise...which makes sense, considering they have no way to travel from island to island and socialize! 

                **************

These tortoises had their own spa!  (Next photo.)

            

Protection. Refuge.  They can withdraw to a place of safety.

 

We need protection, too. Where is OUR refuge?  OUR place of safety? We aren't born with built-in "shells" into which we can retreat! 

It can be looked for in many places....other people or philosophies, "religions"...but what emotional and spiritual safety might be found there doesn't last.  

True lasting protection is not in a "where", but in a "Who",  the one Person to whom we can run for refuge, strength and healing and who will never let us down.  

             ********************

                                                                                                                                            The giant to the right has its head, neck and legs splayed out on the ground, a position taken when resting, totally relaxed.  It knows itself safe.

We, too, can know ourselves safe when we accept the offer of protection God our Father tenders.  Millennia-old words are just as relevant today.

"Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings."  (Psalm 17:8)

"You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance."  (Psalm 32:7)

"The name of the LORD is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." (Proverbs 18:10)

By the way, here's another thing the tortoises are protected from...the rain! Their "umbrellas" go with them wherever they roam! 

 We didn't mind the drizzle, but - like my husband Germán - we all had to wear gum boots.  

The tortoises also have a continuous buffet.  They are surrounded by their food sources.  

The tortoises eat mainly grasses and leaves. They also take advantage of fallen fruits - like the big guy at the right, who is munching on a...hmm, WE call it a "guayaba", but in the U.S. and other countries, for some reason it is called a "guava". (Here, guava is another fruit completely!)

When the guide told us they also eat cactus, I asked him what they do about the big, spiky spines? They actually knock the "paddles" to the ground and then paw at them over and over, causing the spines to fall off.  Pretty cool!

              *********************

God provides abundantly for the tortoises.  How much more for his children?

"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by his own glory and goodness."    (II Peter 1:3)

                                        **********************

                      "The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;                                                          my God is my rock, in Whom I take refuge,                                                                     my shield and the horn of my salvation,                                                                                           my stronghold."     (Psalm 18:2)

                                                          ******

Inside a lava tunnel - in the Galapagos...(and in Life)

🎵

"And they all go marching down, to the ground, to get out of the rain."  

 That wasn't our goal, (although it was, in fact, raining at the time!).  My husband Germán, daughter Debbie, son-in-law Steve, and granddaughters Liliana (13) and Miriam (12) and I descended into the "bowels of the earth" to admire a lava tunnel on the Galapagos Islands.  (Actually, lava tunnels are usually only a few meters underground.)

Due to the total lack of sunlight,  there were electric lights positioned  strategically, but just enough to allow one to avoid losing one's heading and smashing into iron-hard, rough walls or banging one's legs on sharp volcanic rocks!  (The lights went out for just a few seconds...we could see absolutely nothing!)

The photo to the right looks back on the stairs we had just carefully walked down.  Due to my fibromyalgia, I have a bit of vertigo, so my dear husband stayed back with me so he could catch me if I slipped!

Thankfully, I remember from my childhood how to clamber down steep and sometimes slippery places safely.  (When walking in to our house in the jungle -for hours at a time- there were many ups and downs, creeks to cross, stones and boulders,  etc.)

I let Germán get a ways ahead of me so I could take this picture. It's amazing that this whole tunnel, and others like it, were not formed by miners searching for ore, or workmen trying to open a passageway.  This one is quite spacious, with a high ceiling.  Can you imagine how incredibly enormous the river of red-hot lava that forged this tunnel was?

This one, with Steve, is a little blurry, but shows the irregular ceiling and "floor", with rock debris scattered around.

This tunnel is only one of many in volcanic areas around the world, and I'm sure tons of people know a lot more about them than I do. (A LOT more!)  But it's fascinating to read about how these tubes are formed.  Basically, a lava flow starts cooling and solidifying on the surface and outer edges, while the steaming steam of lava inside continues on its merry way!  See a couple of quotes by the next photo.

"Lava streams that flow steadily in a confined channel for many hours or days may develop a solid crust or roof and, thus change gradually into streams within lava tubes."  ("Lava Tube" on "Science Direct", emphasis mine)

"When the supply of lava stops at the end of an eruption or lava is diverted elsewhere, lava in the tube system drains downslope and leaves practically empty conduits below the ground."   ("Lava Tube" on "Science Direct", emphasis mine)

Of course, "empty" is relative, as volcanic rocks, both loose and in irregular formations, are left behind. It's really quite interesting!

For the amusement of the tunnel explorer, the lava stream left this tiny, just-barely-squeeze-under-able passageway. (So we could play "limbo"?)  

The two boards placed there helped us not get too muddy...which was nice, as we were headed to the airport after this for our flight home!

The next picture gives you a better idea of how low this really is!

Germán folded himself up to try to get through without ripping the knees of his jeans...

...then, once he was through, reached down to take my Kindle so I had my hands free to...um...sort of squiggle under...but I managed it with only a couple of mud streaks on my slacks.  We made it!

(My Kindle was a must, as I use it for taking pictures.)

Then, there it was!   The light at the end of the tunnel...literally.  Not the artificial lamps inside, but a glimpse of the outer world, beckoning us into its fresh, open brilliance.

Closer...see the contrast in the lights? Inside the darkness of the tube, the artificial ones SEEMED  bright, especially in comparison to the utter darkness.  But Nature's own glow outshines them by far!

I wonder if this helps illustrate what happens when we die? We go through the "tunnel" of Life,  and there are lights to show us the way, to make sure we don't smash toes, cut ourselves, blunder into hard walls, or get stuck under "limbo" passages! 

Sometimes the light is dim, there are shadows, Life has irregular "ceilings", and  we walk on irregular "floors"...yet trust our Shepherd's lead.

 But when we get to the End...oh my! Up the heavenly Stairs and out into the radiant, open Son-shine and into the presence of our Father!                                                                                   *********************                

A little over nine years ago, my father (Bruce) was escorted up, to forever enjoy basking in that Light.  Almost a year later, my mother (Joyce) climbed the Stairs to join him.  Those of us who are secure in our Hope of Eternity look forward to this journey,  knowing that the "lava tunnel of Life", with its sharpness and shadows, will be forever behind us, as we gain the Place where...

                "The sun will no more be your light by day,                                                           nor will the brightness of the moon shone on you,                                                                 for the Lord will be your everlasting light,                                                                                  and your God will be your glory."       (Isaiah 60:19 NIV)

                                               *************