Author: Alyssa Gluck (Page 4 of 4)

The floor is littered with legos and spy gear.

There is a constant streaming of Minecraft strategic dialogue.

These boys of mine. They sweat, they play, they wrestle, they create.

And somehow according to God’s great design….. a little girl, dressed in pink leotard, with frills, and beads, and high-heeled shoes DANCES.  She dances oblivious to the fact that her brothers have set up cameras, lights and alarms to spy on her.  She just dances to the song she sings because that’s what she was created to do.

And she beckons mama to come, and sit, and put her phone down….to watch her dance.

She dances with focus and abandon.  I smile and think, “when was it that we stopped dancing? When did we get too distracted by the spies around us who were competing for the spotlight?  When did we lose our confidence?”

What would it take to dance again? To be free? To pirouette and twirl to the beat of our own song?

Because I think that inside everyone of US is a little girl with a desire to dance- to be celebrated-to be accepted-to be championed for shining in the ways God made her to shine.

Could we do that for each other?  Rather than being jealous or threatened when we see each other succeed, could we clap and cheer  each other on?..

My thoughts are interrupted as the song ends, and a little girl with blonde braids curtsies. I applaud and she smiles.  Her mission is accomplished. Someone watched her do her “thing” and  affirmed her in her gifts…she is satisfied and the day can go on.

My mama’s heart was full watching my little angel dance that day.  And God reminded me:  He, our Abba (Daddy) God loves to watch His precious daughters dance too. He dotes over us- these babes of His flesh, and He delights in applauding us when He sees us DANCE in all our glory.

So dance, sister knowing there is a God who DELIGHTS in you just as you are. Dance and we will cheer you on.

“He will take great delight in you. He will quiet you with His love. He will rejoice over you with singing. ” Zephaniah 3:16

-Alyssa

“Firefighters have almost completely contained The King Fire, Cal Fire said Friday night. ” The wildfire that was  sparked 20 days ago reeked havoc on 151 miles of mountain terrain . The effects of the fire and smoke spanned for hundreds of miles. The landscape of the area has been forever changed. For those of us in NorCal, the King fire  affected the weather patterns and air quality in our area.   Even here at home, children were brought indoors for recesses, soccer practices were cancelled, and asthmatics were given breathing treatments.

I wrote this entry last week….

“Here at home….it’s an eery kind of overcast. The smell of smoke is thick in the air. The air quality reports are measuring dangerous to sensitive people.

And my family- we are sensitive. Not to breathing the smoky air but to the memories the smell triggers for us. There has been so much healing, but the memories are still fresh from our own fire.

Two years ago- that pungent smoke smell accompanied the horrific sight of watching our home burn down.

Flames of FIRE only burned a few of our belongings, the attic, and the wall frames of half of our house. SMOKE, however permeated everything that could be salvaged. For months, that smell would make my throat ache and my stomach churn. SMOKE and Fire: destructive accomplices  working  hand-in-hand to destroy.

AND YET, as I breathe that smoky air and remember our house fire, I remember the devastation, yes. I remember the loss and the trauma my family experienced but more than that I remember GOD’S PRESENCE.

The thick smoke smell brings it all back.

God in fire.

Literally.

He was with us.

I think about the devastation fire brings. I remember how it took my kids’ toys, and my childhood piano, our furniture, and some nostalgic objects. I remember the trauma of being “homeless” for a bit. But more than that I remember how GOD was SO very present in it all. It was like He was right there with us. Everyday we saw miracles. We needed and He provided. We were scared and He comforted. We were traumatized and fearful and He restored our courage and hope. We lost almost every tangible THING, but we gained the KINGDOM.

“Though you walk through the fire, I will be there. And through the flames. You’ll not, be burned. For I am with you.” Isaiah 43:2

And here’s the weirdest and coolest thing. In studying the Bible , I learned that God used FIRE and SMOKE to represent his God’s presence again and again. One commentary said “God’s revelation of Himself and His will was often accompanied by FIRE.”

Think about it:

• The voice of God spoke to Moses in a “burning” bush
• When Moses went up to meet God at Mt. Sinai, the mountain top was consumed with FIRE (the very presence of God)
• When Baal and Elijah chose to sacrifice at the altars, they both prayed for their gods to bring down a FIRE from heaven to show which one was REAL. Guess who won?
• Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego were thrown in the FIRE when they refused to bow down to another god.  The image of a fourth man was also seen in the fire (Jesus)
• God led the Israelites to the Promised land through a cloud of smoke in the day and  a pillar of FIRE by night.

The year anniversary of our house fire, we sat around the table and talked about what we remembered, what we had learned. My six year old son said it best: “I learned GOD was REAL.”

Yep, and He did that through the fire.  So from this day forward, when I smell that pungeant smoke smell, or I see flames burning, or hear news reports of land set ablaze, my heart will ache for those who will experience loss through that fire. I know how devastating that can be. But part of me will smirk a bit and think.”just wait – God is gonna reveal Himself through that fire.”

“Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.” Hebrews 12:28-29

Alyssa

The story is familiar. We’re going along on our merry way when suddenly, one day,  life takes an unexpected turn: a turn that leaves us injured, wounded and  feeling paralyzed.   We find ourselves in desperate need of help . I’m sure you have been there.

The Bible tells the story of the paralyzed man who couldn’t get to Jesus on his own. There were no wheelchairs, no hospital bed. He laid on a mat….Until his friends enter the scene.  God and man connected for a moment because his friends cared.   It was ultimately THEIR FAITH, not his own, that  healed him.  With compassion and great determination, four of them surrounded the paralyzed man and lifted the mat he lay on, carrying him to the house where Jesus was. And they didn’t stop there.  Through the crowds, the paralyzed man still couldn’t get to Jesus on his own. So the friends found a way- together. They distributed and shouldered his weight. They strategized, stumbled, leaned on each other, and creatively decided to just break the roof off the house. (Whose idea was that? Those are pretty determined friends,  if you ask me). Through that hole, they lowered their friend on the mat all the way down to Jesus’ feet.  “Pay attention to this one, Lord!” And BECAUSE OF THEIR FAITH, Jesus healed the man.

Can you relate to this story? I sure can. Two years ago, I was that girl on the mat. A series of painful events including the death of my grandmother and a devastating house fire left me broken, emotionally and physically exhausted, and paralyzed with fear.  It was in that time that the God who sees me and knows our needs came in the form of friends. Many, many folks jumped on board to help us, but 4 key people, in particular, chose the messy job of carrying my mat. Each one grabbed an end and carried me to Jesus.  They mobilized the community to provide food for our family, a roof over our heads, toys for our kids, care for my little ones when I couldn’t be a mother, and offered tons of emotional support.  Through THEM I knew God was real. God was caring for me through the hands and feet of friends.  Left on my own, I wouldn’t have been able to get off my mat and out of my pit. It was their love in action, their FAITH that God used to heal me.

Gradually I regained my strength. Then recently, one of my 4  mat- holder friends went down. She was the strongest of us all…none of us saw it coming.  She had been my “rock” in my ugliest and darkest days. It was time to carry her. With renewed vision I assumed the role of mat- holder, gladly sacrificing myself so this time my friend could be whole again.

” Comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” (2 Corithians 1:2)

I watched my friend paralyzed from the pain of watching two loved ones pass away within the span of a couple weeks. And so…it was time for the mat-holders, those who were carried by her before, to be the hands and feet of Jesus, to provide for her tangible needs, clean her house, care for her kids, cry with her ,pray for Jesus to do a miracle. We assume new positions around the mat and carry our friend to Jesus begging Him to pay attention.

And I’m learning that this, my friends,  is community. RICH, deep, MESSY community. God did not create us to be alone. He comes in mysterious, supernatural ways. And sometimes he shows Himself through people.  They carried me on my mat when I couldn’t survive life alone, He healed me because of their faith. And now that I’m stronger it is a joy to carry them when life leaves them paralyzed.

Who in your life is “paralyzed” and can’t get to Jesus alone? Let’s be  mat-holders.

And when we find ourselves in those dark places  lying paralyzed on a mat- let us lay aside our pride and be willing to let God become real through our friends who know the way to the healer and will stop at no end to get us there.

“Carry each other’s burdens and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ” Galatians 6:2

Grateful,

Alyssa