January Photo Dump, AKA Almost Wordless Wednesday

We have spent the past 18 days in Hawaii.  Les celebrated six years on the job here this month.  It's been quite an adventure.  We found a great rental in Discovery Bay and it was nice to be back in the building where we spent most of 2013.  We have great sunset views:

Along with glimpses of the ocean

and the mountains!

The full moon was spectacular here...

I watched the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day parade from the 19th floor. 

There was one very impressive group on unicycles!

Les rode his bike to the North Shore on Saturday.  I drove over and we enjoyed some much needed down time.  Les works really hard when he is here and the town of Haleiwa has such a different feel from the noise and congestion of Waikiki.

We had lunch at the Big Wave Shrimp truck.  Coconut shrimp for Les, garlic shrimp for me...

Followed up with coffee and a big dose of Polynesian Paralysis...

and some silliness!

We finished the afternoon in a Ukulele shop.  Les found an electric bass ukulele to play around with. 
 

We now have a Sunday morning breakfast/brunch tradition.  Cinnamon's at the Ilikai.  They have the best coffee and their weekly pancake specials are always amazing.  This week was blueberry with blueberry cream cheese topping - off the charts!

We're packing up to head home tomorrow.

Woman of the Week ~ Mother Rewarded by Solomon

Verses:  1 Kings 3:16-28

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings

What is she most known for?

Victories? Defeats?

How can I be like her?

How can I avoid being like her?

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?

The Syrophoenician Woman ~ Woman of the Week

A key theme to this story is getting our prayers answered.  We need to understand that any mercy God shows us is more than we deserve.  For more on that subject, click here. 

Verses: Matthew 15:21-28, Mark 7:24-30 

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings 
We don't know much about this woman's family - only that she had at least one daughter.  Where was her husband?  Had he left because of the state of her daughter?  Were there other children, siblings who were afraid of their sister?  We just don't know the answer to these questions.

This woman's background is an important part of the story.  Mark 7:26 says, "The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation."  The first part, "The Jews called all persons “Greeks” who were not of their nation. The whole world was considered as divided into Jews and Greeks." (Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible)  The second part, "a Syrophoenician by nation — so called as inhabiting the Phoenician tract of Syria. Matthew calls her “a woman of Canaan” - a more intelligible description to his Jewish readers."  (A Commentary on the Old and New Testaments by Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown {JFB})  What Matthew and Mark both wanted the readers to know was she was most definitely NOT a Jew.

What is she most known for?  Victories? Defeats? How can I be like her? How can I avoid being like her? 
We don't know her name.  We don't know her daughter's name.  But this woman, who was not a Jew, showed us the power of persistence.  The story played out like this:

"Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil."
But he answered her not a word. 
And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
Jesus said, "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.
But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.
And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table. 
Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

She didn't stop when she didn't get the answer the first time.  Her request changed to worship, even as Jesus said He wasn't sent to an outsider like her.  Even after Jesus called her a dog, she humbly kept asking.

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset? If so, did she? For good or evil?
I wonder if when she first came she was expecting a quick fix.   She had to have heard of Jesus.  Her story takes place in Matthew chapter 15, in previous chapters Jesus had healed a leper, cast out demons, raised the sick of the palsy, healed the woman with the issue of blood, raised Jairus' daughter and fed five thousand.  There was no radio or internet, but word was spreading about this Miracle Worker.

Maybe she thought she could just slip in among the crowd, cry out her request, and happily be on her way.  But Jesus didn't immediately respond and now she had a choice to make.  Should she keep asking or go home to a tormented daughter.  I don't know if she first came believing the she "deserved" this miracle, but her reset happened when she decided that no matter how low she had to stoop, even crumbs where going to be enough.

"First, Her humility and necessity made her glad of crumbs. Those who are conscious to themselves that they deserve nothing, will be thankful for any thing; and then we are prepared for the greatest of God's mercies, when we see ourselves less than the least of them. The least of Christ is precious to a believer, and the very crumbs of the bread of life.
Secondly, Her faith encouraged her to expect these crumbs. Why should it not be at Christ's table as at a great man's, where the dogs are fed as sure as the children? Observe, She calls it their master's table; if she were a dog, she was HIS dog, and it cannot be ill with us, if we stand but in the meanest relation to Christ."  (Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible)

"The little dogs share with the children, for they eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. I do not desire what is provided for these highly favored children, only what they leave: a single exertion of thy almighty power, in the healing of my afflicted daughter, is all that I wish for." (Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible)

Of course we know the end of the story.  Her life must have completely reset when her daughter was made whole.  Jesus told her "great is thy faith." "The hinderances thrown in this woman’s way only tended to increase her faith. Her faith resembles a river, which becomes enlarged by the dykes opposed to it, till at last it sweeps them entirely away with it.  Persevering faith and prayer are next to omnipotent. No person can thus pray and believe, without receiving all his soul requires. This is one of the finest lessons in the book of God for a penitent, or for a discouraged believer. Look to Jesus! As sure as God is in heaven, so surely will he hear and answer thee to the eternal salvation of thy soul! Be not discouraged at a little delay: when thou art properly prepared to receive the blessing, then thou shalt have it. Look up; thy salvation is at hand. Jesus admires this faith, to the end that we may admire and imitate it, and may reap the same fruits and advantages from it." (Adam Clarke)

The key to getting prayers answered is perseverance, humility and knowing that what you receive will be what your soul requires.  As I said earlier this week, God is not a vending machine, so asking for a million dollars, no matter how long you ask, probably does not fall under the category of "what your soul requires."  Believe that your needs will be met and like this great woman of faith keep asking!

Things I Know About Prayer

As I've been reading and pondering the story of the Syrophenician woman, I've taken a look at Jesus' response.  It seemed He was unusually unkind to this woman.  First He ignored her, then insulted her.  Even after she worshiped Him, He didn't grant her request.  It's a story that we can learn a lot from.  I don't have all the answers but here are some things I DO know about prayer:

1.  God is Sovereign
He sees the whole picture.  He knows that answering your prayer in the way YOU want, may not be the best for you.  The Apostle Paul writes about a thorn in his flesh in 2 Corinthians 12:7-9.  Paul prayed and God said "No."  Along with that no came a promise, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness."

2.  God is Able
Les is a living, walking, breathing, cycling example of God's healing power.   A little boy with Muscular Dystrophy who was losing the use of his legs, was healed one Sunday morning.

3.  Your Sincerity May Not Change the Outcome
No one has ever prayed more earnestly than Les and I did when Rod was near the end of this life.  We sought God for healing, we fasted for seven days, we prayed and cried.  But God, because He is sovereign, still allowed Rod to die.  Was there something greater behind the scenes at work?  I absolutely believe there was.

4.  God is NOT a Vending Machine
We don't get to put in our 2 cents worth of prayer and expect God to answer according to our will.

As I said, I don't have all the answers.  But I do know that if you never prayer, you will never see a single prayer get answered.  Prayers absolutely get heard and they get answered according to the will of the One Who hears them.

Woman of the Week ~ Syrophoenician Woman

I'm moving to the New Testament this week and will be looking at another nameless woman in the Bible. 

Verses:  Matthew 15:21-28, Mark 7:24-30

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings

What is she most known for?

Victories? Defeats?

How can I be like her?

How can I avoid being like her?

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?

Naaman's Servant Girl ~ Woman of the Week

An unnamed girl is chosen as my woman of the week this week.  She is only talked about in four verses, but her testimony of the power of the God of Israel changed the life of a powerful man!

Verses: 2 Kings 5:1-4

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings
There is nothing written about this young girl's family.  One only commentary estimated her age to be about eight to ten years old.  Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible said this about her parents, "A little maid - Who, it appears, had pious parents, who brought her up in the knowledge of the true God. Affectionate parents are deprived of their promising daughter by a set of lawless freebooters, without the smallest prospect that she should have any lot in life but that of misery, infamy, and woe.  If God permitted the parents to be deprived of their pious child by the hands of ruffians, he did not permit the child to be without a guardian."

What is she most known for? Victories? Defeats? How can I be like her? How can I avoid being like her?
This young girl will always be remembered for her outspoken faith.  She didn't hesitate at all in her belief of what God could do through His prophet.  "Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy." (2 Kings 5:3)

"We see here the permanent results of early religious training. This captive maiden, because she had been taught to know and trust God, was so strong in faith that she was the means of bringing salvation to the house of her captivity, and of raising up a testimony for God which rang through the whole land of Syria." (The Biblical Illustrator By Joseph S. Exell, M.A.) 

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?

I can only imagine how scared this young girl must have been as she was carried away captive.  I wonder if her father was killed in battle, leaving the family unprotected.  She was alone and put to work. The people of Israel were then desperately wicked. It was the time of Jezebel; and thousands had forsaken Jehovah for idols. But her parents were obedient to the teachings of Deuteronomy chapter 6, "And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:  And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.  And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates."  She was taught the ways of God and carried that in her heart to the place of her captivity.

She could have easily ignored her master's disease.  Naaman was stricken with leprosy.  There was no cure.  "This little maid was a captive in Naaman’s household. It would, therefore, have not been at all unnatural had she hated him. But, instead of that, she pitied him as a leper, and manifested her kindly feelings toward him by telling her mistress where he could obtain deliverance from his sad condition."  (The Biblical Illustrator By Joseph S. Exell, M.A.)

"Helpless as she was, the little maid of the story helped her master to the recovery of health, and the knowledge of God. Now the basis of her helpfulness was her religious training. She could help man, because she knew God. When they carried her away captive she could sing them the Lord’s song in a strange land." (The Biblical Illustrator By Joseph S. Exell, M.A.)

There is a lot said about the healing of Naaman, especially the unusual manner that Elisha used (dipping seven times in the muddy Jordan river.)  But greater than physical healing was the spiritual transformation that took place.  2 Kings 5:15 says, "And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel."

I assume that most of my readers are no longer children, so our days of being a witness as a child are behind us.  But there are a couple of lessons for all of us.  1) No matter the situation, on the job, at home, the store or school, we can be a witness.  2)  Keep teaching children the ways of God!  As you make a difference in their life, you never know how God may use them to change a life.

Woman of the Week ~ Naaman's Servant Girl

As I completed my study of Anna last week, I thought it would be fitting to study a young woman this week.

Verses: 2 Kings 5:1-4

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings

What is she most known for?

Victories? Defeats?

How can I be like her?

How can I avoid being like her?

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?

Anna the Prophetess ~ Woman of the Week

At Victory Tabernacle we start the year one of two ways - with special revival services or with "Anna Week."  Pastor White calls it "Anna Week" in reference to Anna the prophetess who "departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day."  For our church family it is a time dedicated to prayer and fasting, so it seemed fitting that I would kick off my second year of studying women of the Bible with Anna.

Verses: Luke 2:36-38

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings
We know very little about Anna, "she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity;  And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years."  There are differing views on her age.  Some commentaries said she was 84 (fourscore and four years) while others thought she had been a widow for 84 years.  If she had been widowed that long and only married for seven years, she would have been well over 100 years of age.  Either way, she was a woman well up in years.  Although she was married for seven years, it doesn't appear that she had any children.

What is she most known for? Victories? Defeats? How can I be like her? How can I avoid being like her?
In three verses we find a woman who had been faithful to her husband, faithful to God, and was rewarded to see Jesus as an infant.  Jesus would have been 40 days old when He was brought by Joseph and Mary to the temple.

What is not written in the Bible, but what we do know is that Anna was born and lived during the 400 Years of Silence.  This was the time between the Old and New Testaments when God did not speak to His people through any prophets.  A lot happened to the nation of Israel in that time (you can read about it here and here.) It was at the end of those years that Gabriel appeared to Zacharias in Luke chapter one.  Anna would most likely have been with those who waited while Zacharias tarried so long in the temple. Jesus was born approximately six months after John the Baptist, so it would have been approximately 16 months later when Anna would finally see the Christ.

The Biblical Illustrator, by Joseph S. Exell, M.A. had this to say:
A very beautiful completion of a very beautiful picture. Simeon standing there alone as the representative of humanity is isolated; is there nowhere a companion who may share the riches of this new joy? The other side of human nature must be represented, and that deficiency is made up by the presence of the venerable prophetess. There they stand as father and mother of the whole race, giving hospitality and welcome to Him who came to save the world. They stood, as it were, at the front door of the world’s house, and spake to the young King in the name of the captives He came to deliver. There are some womanly characteristics in this passage which should be noted.
1.  She departed not from the Temple—persistent, faithful, constant.
2.  She served God with fastings and prayers night and day—self-denial, profound devotion, continual watching.
3.  Where Simeon prayed, Anna gave thanks. It would seem as if there was just the faintest touch of self-consideration in the prayer of Simeon, as he wished to be gone from scenes that wearied him; but the prophetess, eighty and four years old, constant through all changes, hopeful through all fears, was willing to linger longer, for she spoke nothing of her own release, but thanked God for His mercy, and comforted many that looked for redemption in Jerusalem. Blessed are they who can sing in their old age, and turn all their own experience into comfort for those who mourn.

"Inspired of God, she recognized the long looked-for Messiah, and immediately she broke into praise, and forthwith began to communicate the joyful fact to all whom she could reach." (The Pulpit Commentary)

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?
Anna certainly reached a crossroad when her husband died.  She could have been as young as 19 since 12 1/2 was marriageable age at that time.  She was within the law to remarry, but for reasons we do not know, she remained a widow.  But she was not called Anna the widow, but Anna the prophetess.  She didn't allow her widowhood to define her.  She was known as a woman devoted to prayer and fasting.

More from The Biblical Illustrator, by Joseph S. Exell, M.A:

While still very young the maiden was wedded, and for seven happy years youth and love filled her heart with gladness. But at the end of that time the shadow of death passed over the Jewish home and hid the light, and stilled the song, and filled the house with mourning. What was she to do, that young widow with her life before her? She had surely some excuse for joining that innumerable company of disappointed women who talk of blighted lives, and are themselves a blight upon everything that comes near them. But she let “the useful trouble” of her life soften and sanctify her.

She put her trust in the God of Israel, and received with meekness the chastening of His hand. She took herself and her sorrow to the Temple. And there a new longing and a new love took possession of her;. for were they not all looking for the Messiah, and might not the time of His coming be near? She would consecrate herself to God and to His service in the Temple. Other women could not do it; the sweet clamour of the children, and the wishes of their husbands kept them at home; but she would have her pleasures too, and the joy of the Lord should be her strength.

And so the young widow took her place, and day by day, and year by year, returned to it. The sun touched Olivet with golden beams and left it again in shadow more times than she could count. The fig trees blossomed and shed their fruit, the valleys drank up the early and the latter rain, the tender grapes became ripe and were gathered, the corn showed first the green blade, and then the full ears; the feasts came round with their joyous assemblings; and, year after year, Anna was in the Temple, neither wretched nor useless.

God gave to her the gift of prophecy. She saw what some eyes could not see, and she had power to utter the Divine revelations which were made to her. Complacently and tranquilly she saw the years pass away until eighty-four had seamed her face, and bent her form.

But He whom she had served with such fidelity and devotion had a wonderful joy in reserve for her yet. Coming into the Temple one day, as usual, she heard an unusual sound. Simeon, with tremulous voice, was singing that new song, which has been continued by the Church ever since. In his arms he held the Child Jesus; and, seeing Him, what could Anna do but take up the strain of thanksgiving, and pour out her soul in praise? And then she found that, after all, her work was not over. She had known what it was to wait long, and others were waiting still. She could not keep the good news to herself. She became the first evangelist of His advent in the city of her King, and “spake of Him to all them.

More important than her years in the temple is what Anna did after she saw Jesus.  She "gave thanks and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem."  "It is probable she went about from house to house, testifying the grace of God. At all events, it appears that this widow was one of the first publishers of the Gospel of Christ, and it is likely that she traveled with it from house to house through the city of Jerusalem, where she knew they dwelt who were expecting the salvation of God."  (Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible)

What a great woman of God!  She proved that we are never too old to praise Him and share the good news of Jesus.

Woman of the Week ~ Anna the Prophetess

As I did in 2015, I plan to publish the name of my Woman of the Week on Monday and follow up with a complete post about her on Friday.

 

Verses: Luke 2:36-38

Background – parents, husband, children, siblings

What is she most known for?

Victories? Defeats?

How can I be like her?

How can I avoid being like her?

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?

Woman of the Week ~ Mom

My Mom would have turned 79 today.  In honor of her birthday, I thought I would write her in as my first Woman of the Week for 2019.

Verses: 
Obviously, there aren't any verses in the Bible with her story, but oh how her Bible has blessed me!  I have blogged from it and about it for over ten years.  It is my dearest earthly treasure.

Background
She was born on January 1, 1940 to Hogan and Luella Pearson.  She was the first baby born in Tulare county that year.  She was the second of four children - she had an older brother, Dean, a younger sister, Joyce, and a younger brother, Don.
She married Robert Fultz on October 3, 1958.  They produced four offspring - Kim, Rick, Rod and Kathy.  They celebrated their 40th anniversary one week before she passed away.

What is she most known for? Victories? Defeats? How can I be like her? How can I avoid being like her? 
Oh my!  There are so many things I can list, here are a few:

Baking - Mom was not a great cook, she would have told you that.  She was rather picky and didn't enjoy trying new foods.  But when it came to baked goods, especially chocolate, she couldn't be beat!  She definitely passed that gift on to me.  What I didn't get was her decorating ability.  She was a master at beautiful cakes, but she could also make beautiful cookies.  I remember her using a paintbrush to get food coloring on turkey cookies before they were baked.  They came out with a glaze of beautiful feathers.  I also knew that Les had received her silent approval when I told her how much he liked brownies and the next time he came for a visit that is what she made!

Kids - Mom loved kids.  She was able to stay home with all of us because she babysat little ones in our home.  For years she preferred newborns, then she seemed to switch and really enjoy the two to four year old age range.  She taught Sunday school for decades and Pre-K at the Christian school for several years.  She loved her own four kids and was ecstatic when she became Grandma!

Nursing - Mom didn't have a nursing degree, but with Rod's health issues she became a pro in her own right.  Rod broke his femur two different times in less than 12 months.  Because of his hemophilia the healing process was a little more complicated.  He spent about 6 weeks in the hospital in traction so the bones could start mending.  He then came home in a body cast.  Mom tended to his needs daily.  Mom and Dad both knew how to mix Rod's medicine and give him injections.  Her experiences allowed her to become the youth camp nurse for many years.  She loved going to camp and taking care of all the kids there.

Animals - We nicknamed our home "Fultz's Funny Farm" for a reason!  Mom loved every type of animal and our home was never without at least one dog. I wrote about it in detail in this post, but there is one story I have to share here.  Just as she did with children, Mom nourished and nurtured every animal that came her way. Dad was very patient, but every once in a while he put his foot down. One peaceful Saturday afternoon, we kids were playing at home, Dad was trying to relax, maybe even take a nap on the couch, when Mom came home:

Mom (rushing in the house): Bob, I need a box
Dad: Huh? A box? What for?
Mom: There's a little animal I need to rescue.
Dad: Where?
Mom: Around the corner.
Dad (knowing it is now useless to argue): I'll go with you, let me get my shoes on.
Mom: Well hurry!
Dad (when they get to the animal): It's a mole! We're not taking that thing home!

Friends - Mom had some very close friends in our church family.  Friends that she could talk to for hours!  She loved talking on the phone as much as any teenager.  I know there was laughter, but I also know she shared tears and prayers with these dear friends of hers.

Did she reach a place when she needed to reset?  If so, did she?  For good or evil?
I'm sure there were many times Mom needed to reset, but the most significant happened when she was about 20 years old.  She was raised going to church, but after Kim was born our family moved away from Visalia.  I believed they lived in Selma for a time, then they moved to Fresno.  Some time after their move, Irene Wilkinson asked Mom if they could pick her up for church.  Kenneth and Irene took Mom to church for many years (she didn't get her driver's license until she was 23 or 24.)

By the time I was born, Mom was firmly planted in Truth Tabernacle.  It was her church home for about 38 years.  I can never remember a time when Mom chose to stay home from church if she was not sick.  I know there were times that she was tired, but going to church was not optional.  She loved God and His Word.  I flipped through her Bible and found so many quotes.  I tried to find a couple to use, but there were just too many.  I finally settled on this one, written in large all caps letters:

HIS GRACE IS SUFFICIENT

That is the key that she found to go through whatever joys or sorrows life brought.  Trials and victories, hurts and hopes, Mom knew that HIS grace was sufficient.

Happy Birthday, Mom!