Families quite often have that “one child”. I know we did. We had four children, all unique individuals with their own personality, potential, and problems. But it was our second child who was that “one child”. He wasn’t a bad boy, he just required more discipline. He tormented his siblings, tried our patience, and twisted me around his little finger. As a sweet, older friend used to say, he was “full of beans!” Sometimes strong willed and frustrated, he was often filled with a restless energy. One evening the family was having dinner at the home of one of our parishioners. We were gathered around the table when all of sudden the table began to shake. I reacted quickly, “Greg, stop shaking the table!” He declared in all innocence, “But I’m not!” A minute later we realized it wasn’t him at all. It was an earthquake! We laugh now at the memory of me blaming Greg for an earthquake.

More recently the Buffalo area, where I live, experienced an earthquake. Early in the morning people were awakened by an explosive sound and by shaking beds and rattling cupboards. That’s what they tell me anyway. I slept right through it. I guess it takes more than an earthquake to wake me up. (On that same day on the other side of the world, Turkey experienced a massive, devastating earthquake that destroyed much and killed many. I do not mean to downplay or make light of that tragedy.)

I started thinking about earthquakes when I read the story of Paul and Silas in prison. The story is found in Acts 16:20-34. It’s an amazing account. Paul and Silas were thrown into prison and bound by shackles for preaching the Gospel. They kept their spirits up by focusing on the Lord. They prayed and sang and praised God! And the other prisoners listened to them. Then this happened:

As I thought about this verse I realized that sometimes it takes an earthquake. I contrasted it to the story of Elijah in 1 Kings 19. In this chapter the great prophet of God was suffering from depression. In fact, Elijah was so melancholy he was hoping to die! So God reached out to him. As the account goes, there was a great and mighty wind, an earthquake and then a fire, but God wasn’t in any of those. Elijah discovered that God was in a still, small voice. We love this story. How nice to have the calming effect of a quiet, gentle whisper. We prefer God dealing with us in that way. However, sometimes it takes an earthquake!

People often associate earthquakes with God’s judgment and a sign of the end times. But that’s not always the case. Just look at Paul and Silas. God wasn’t judging them, he was setting them free!

And then there’s the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. According to Matthew’s gospel, when Christ breathed his last breath on the cross, the sky darkened and the earth shook. Matthew calls it a great earthquake. Two important things happened during this earthquake. First and most importantly, the veil in the temple that separated the common man from the “Holy of Holies”, which was the representation of God’s presence, was torn in two from top to bottom! We, no matter who we are, now have access to God! Secondly, Matthew tells us that it was at this time the centurion, the soldier who stood at the foot of the cross, recognized who Jesus was. He cried out, “Surely this was the Son of God!” This particular earthquake proclaimed two great truths: Jesus was who he said he was and because of His death on the cross, we now can approach God without fear.

Another earthquake took place three days later. Jesus had been placed in a tomb that was sealed with a large rock and guarded by soldiers. But then, Matthew tells us there was another great earthquake. The earth shook, an angel descended and the stone sealing the grave rolled away. Christ arose and came out of the grave! He that was dead, now lived! What an amazing event took place during this earthquake! Sometimes God uses earthquakes to accomplish His will and to bless His creation.

I believe there are times when God sends us individual earthquakes. Not literal earthquakes, of course, but difficult circumstances that will shake us and wake us. And quite often we do get all shook up! We question God, we feel deserted and betrayed, we strive to keep our faith, and we wonder if God is judging us. But what we need to realize and remember that even in the darkest and scariest of earthquakes God can bring a blessing.

Are you experiencing an earthquake in your life? Are you in the middle of a desperate situation, an unexpected loss, a terrible tragedy? Have hope! God may be using your very own earthquake for a greater purpose. He may be calling you into His presence, revealing Himself to you in a greater way, seeking to give you a new and different life. Like Paul and Silas in prison, the earthquake you are experiencing just might bring a miracle!

My daughter recently broke her little toe. She wasn’t wearing any shoes when she rammed her foot into the bottom of a ladder, but it was just the little toe that got broken. The smallest of the bunch, the runt of the litter, the one that goes wee-wee-wee all the way home. My initial reaction? No big deal. You can’t do much for a broken toe anyway. It’s a month later, and she’s still hurting and wearing a protective boot. She ended up getting X-rays and seeing an orthopedic doctor twice. And the latest prognosis is it will take another month to heal! Little things can hurt.

Some time ago on a Sunday morning I was really enjoying the worship service. I was moved in particular by a specific chorus and I was singing with joy. Perhaps I was singing with too much gusto, because someone turned to look at me with an unhappy, questioning expression on their face. Was I too loud? Was I off key? I don’t know. But I do know I stopped singing.

That incident reminds me of another ‘look’ I received as a little girl. Well, I received a lot of looks, stares and snide remarks as a girl, because with my disability I walked funny and slow. But this particular look took place in church as well. It was during the communion service and I was maybe 8 or 9 years old. Perhaps because of my age, one of the ushers passing the elements failed to give me one of the little cups of juice. My mother got his attention and he handed me one. However, because I was flustered and embarrassed by being forgotten, instead of waiting to ‘partake together’, I drank mine immediately. I will never forget the look of disapproval that man gave me. It hurt. I know and understand what he was thinking. He assumed I had no respect for the communion ceremony, and that I was just a kid who wanted some juice. But I know my heart and I know the hurt I felt from just a look.

Little things matter. They can really hurt. A snicker or a scowl, an untimely laugh, a cutting remark or sarcastic response, or even just being ignored are all things that can hurt deeply and wound someone for a very long time. The Bible tells us that “little foxes spoil the vines”. It doesn’t have to be a big thing to do a lot of damage.

In her book Beautiful Things Happen When A Woman Trusts God, author and well-known Christian speaker Sheila Walsh openly shares about her battle with severe depression. Among the things she shares are the hurts she experienced from friends who did not understand her struggle. This was especially true when she spent several months in a psychiatric hospital. But later in her book she tells this experience: “I don’t know how I expected them to react, but I was stunned by what they did. They hugged me. That seemingly small act was huge, like a hand reaching into my ocean of doubt and fear.” Little things can heal. They can be a blessing and an encouragement.

When I was a teenager I had several surgeries which required a long term stay in the hospital. Shortly after one of the surgeries I received a letter from my very best friend. Enclosed with the letter was a short newspaper clipping with the headline The Joy of a Pal. It made me feel so special and loved. I cherished that little news article and kept it for many, many years. I had it tucked in the pages of my Bible and read it often.

I now live with my daughter April and her husband. (That’s NOT a little thing!) For Valentine’s day this year Jonathan gave April a big beautiful bouquet of a dozen red roses. When I came out of my room to admire them, I discovered a single yellow rose waiting for me.

A single yellow rose is perfect for me!

His thoughtfulness blessed me. Not only did he give me a rose, but he remembered that yellow is one of my favorite colors. This small gesture may seem like a little thing, but it touched my heart in a big way. By giving me that single rose, he also gave me joy and comfort during a difficult holiday.

My mother-in-law used to occasionally show up at my door with two huge pistachio muffins in her hands. She would smile and say, “Let’s have a cup of tea”. She knew how much I enjoyed those pistachio muffins! I am using past tense because my mother-in-law is almost 90 years old and is now suffering with dementia. I no longer have those muffin and tea times with her, but those small, special moments have become precious memories.

Little things matter. Little things are especially important to the people who are affected by them. They can hurt or they can heal; they can hinder or they can help; they can discourage or they can bring joy and give hope. Little things matter, because they have the potential to do big things!

In my last blog I introduced you to one of my mugs.

I shared with you some of my memories and thoughts concerning this mug and the phrase, “I need your love”. In that posting I stressed that the love we really need is God’s love. Because His love is sacrificial, sustaining and Supreme, it will help us in our most difficult times. But there is more to say about our need for love.

We were made for fellowship. It is an important and needful part of life. When we discuss the purpose of our lives, we usually mention the aspect of worship, giving God glory, and doing His will. But if you read the first few chapters in Genesis, it is quite clear that we were also made for fellowship. God desired fellowship with the creation He had made. He came down to walk with them in the Garden of Eden. We also know that when sin entered the picture that kind of fellowship with God was broken. And so begins the whole Gospel story and the demonstration of God’s great love for us. But a closer look at the Genesis account of creation reveals that we were also made for fellowship with each other.

God was pleased with His creation. Several times Genesis tells us that God saw what He had made was good and at one point declares it was very good! However, there was one thing that God decided was not good. He emphatically declared that it was not good for man to be alone. We need other people. We need each other!

We were also made with the capacity to give and to receive love. Love is an integral part of fellowship. If we do not love one another, any relationship we have with others is shallow and lacking. Love is required by God and commanded by Christ. Not only are we told to love the Lord our God with all our heart and all our soul and all our mind, but we are also enjoined to love our neighbors as much as we love ourselves! And then Jesus says this: This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. -John 15:12

1 Corinthians 13 is a familiar portion of Scripture. It’s called the love chapter. It is recited at weddings, memorized by children, quoted in books, and referred to in movies. It’s a beautiful and true description of what perfect love is.

But it is the Epistle of 1 John that gets to the nitty gritty of the matter. He explains what it means to love as Christ loved us. Loving one another is more than sentiment; it produces action. It’s not just caring about people; it’s caring for people. There is a difference. It is God’s love for us that makes that kind of love possible.

Recently a friend posted this on Facebook:

“The love that we express to one another as brothers and sisters in Christ will be the evidence to the world that God is real. We as Christians already know God is real by the faith that we have. The love that we show each other will strengthen our bond in the faith and encourage more people to come to God.”

I know I definitely need God’s love! But I need your love too. And you need mine! We need each other.

I used to have a cupboard full of mugs. Mugs make great gifts and I was on the receiving end of quite a few. My friends know how much I like tea! But after my husband passed away I had to drastically downsize, so I was only able to keep a limited number of my many mugs. Among the favored few was this one:

I chose to keep this one because I frequently gave it to my husband to use. I served him tea or hot chocolate in this mug on the days I especially wanted to express my affection for him and my appreciation of him, and always on Valentine’s Day. Now it holds my memories.

Valentine’s Day is not easy for me. My husband was a romantic. Often Paul would bring me flowers if he thought I needed encouragement or just because he felt like it. My favorites were the wildflowers he would find and actually pick for me. Because of his romantic nature, he did Valentine’s Day well. One year he put together a cassette tape of all our favorite love songs. (Later he transferred it to a CD so we could continue listening to them.) Another special Valentine’s Day actually began five days prior to the 14th. Every night when I went to bed I found a gift waiting for me on my pillow. No wonder I loved him and needed his love.

I am the one using that mug now, but I view it a little differently. That bedraggled, pathetic looking cartoon cat with the needy, begging eyes is still in need of love. Of course, that somewhat vulnerable cat is a picture of me. My heart still cries out, “I need Your love”. In reality, it’s something we all need. We all cry out for love. The question is where do we find it. The answer is we can only truly find it in God. It is His love that we really need, and it is His love that will satisfy. His love satisfies, because it is a sacrificial love, it is a sustaining love, and it is a supreme love. Consider the greatness of God’s love as you read these Scripture verses:

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love–not that we loved God, but that he loved us and gave his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. –1 John 4:9-10 (NLT)

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. –Romans 5:8 (NLT)

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries for tomorrow–not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. –Romans 8:38 (NLT)

May you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ though it is too great to understand fully… –Ephesians 3:18-19 (NLT)

The faithful love of the Lord never ends! –Lamentations 3:22 (NLT)

The love of a spouse as well as the many friendships and loving relationships we experience are gifts from God and blessings from above. Indeed, we need to develop and cherish them. But each of these relationships, whether it be family or friend, is temporary. And when that time of separation and loss comes, we can rely on the love of God to see us through into eternity.

One Sunday morning as I was on my way to church, I noticed a big, bright billboard. Billboards, of course, are meant to be seen. The point of a billboard is to be eye-catching, but this one caught my eye for a reason. As far as billboards go, it was actually rather plain. No beautiful models, no cute little kids, no funny cartoons. It was just one big sentence with the name of the business in the lower right hand corner. I don’t remember the name of the business (some finance company), but I do remember the words emblazoned across the sign.

The message they were trying to convey is clear. They were promising to have a more personal relationship with their customers than other similar businesses. You would be more than just an abstract account on their computer. They would actually know your name!

Now the reason this sign got my attention was because at first I thought it was quoting a Scripture verse! I even twisted around in my seat to see what it actually said. It was that phrase “call you by your name” that was so familiar. It’s found in Isaiah 43:1.

These words are spoken by God. Here in Isaiah, He is speaking to Israel. The context of this verse is one of reassurance. He begins this statement with a “fear not” and then encourages them with the knowledge that He knows them! The intent of this sentence is the same as the sentence on that billboard. It’s a declaration and a promise of a personal relationship. Just as God knows the name of Israel, He knows your name, too.

Often in Scripture, when God spoke to people He addressed them by their name. From the little boy Samuel to the zealous persecutor Saul, God called them by their name. Knowing someone’s name and using it makes a connection with that person. It’s a personal thing.

I have an unusual name. It’s almost one of a kind. I say ‘almost one of a kind’ because I have occasionally seen my name in print. And I did actually meet another Velva Jane. (That’s my full name. As a child I was called Velva Jane and my sister was Iva Jean. Cute, huh? So I had to chuckle the day I discovered a “Velva Jean” book series.) Anyway, I mention my name, because it can be a problem. I have been called Velma, Velda, Belva, Velvet, and even Barbara! When someone gets my name right, I am quite pleased and surprised! How pleased I am that God knows my name! He doesn’t get it wrong. And the fact that He knows my name implies so much more. It means He knows me!

The verse in Isaiah also speaks of an intimacy. God declares “you are mine”! This is why He calls us, and this is why He calls us by our names. He wants that intimate, personal relationship with us. He knows us and loves us as individuals. When He calls us by our name, we should answer. We don’t need to fear having a relationship with a God who knows our name.

Let’s get personal with God.

Horton is a hero! The Horton I am referring to is, of course, that large, lovable elephant in the classic Dr. Seuss book, Horton Hears a Who. It’s a cute and fun fantasy of a story. But what makes this particular book so special is that within its whimsical pages is a message. There’s a moral to the story and it’s what makes Horton a hero.

The story begins with Horton and a small speck of dust. The startling thing about this speck is that a teeny, tiny voice is coming from it. Perhaps it is because of his huge ears that Horton is the only one able to hear it. Upon closer inspection he discovers a whole new world on this little piece of dust, a place called Whoville. The Whos of Whoville are in danger and afraid. Horton with his big ears and big heart promises to keep them from harm. And there begins the battle! Since none of the other creatures can hear the Whos, Horton is mocked and the inhabitants of Whoville really are in danger of being destroyed. Many lessons can be taught from this tale. It shows the importance of responsibility, keeping your word, and standing alone in spite of what others think.

There are two quotes from the book that stand out to me. You are probably familiar with them as well. Horton expresses his concern and philosophy by saying, “A person’s a person, no matter how small”. The other quote is found near the end of the book. As the Whos get desperate to be heard they gather together and cry out as loud as they possibly can, “We are here, we are here, we are here”! It is in these two well-known lines that we can find what I consider the main message of this story.

When I think about the statement, “A person’s a person, no matter how small.”, my mind goes first of all to the smallest of persons, that is unborn children. These little ones are so easily dismissed and destroyed. Perhaps because they cannot be heard, the value of their existence is denied. I wonder though if there is a silent cry imploring, “We are here! We are here! We are here!” Now I know that Dr. Seuss was not dealing with the abortion issue when he wrote this book, but the principle of his message applies, and it is true and good and right.

There are other small persons we need to consider. These are not necessarily small in size or stature, but in significance. When we speak of significance, we view it from our perspective. There are no insignificant people to God, but by society’s standards, many people appear to be unimportant. We know who these people are. We know of them, but we don’t know them. We hear about them, but we don’t hear them. They are the needy and the neglected, the disabled and the dysfunctional, the homeless and the hurting, the failures and the forgotten. They are neighbors and strangers. They, too, are longing to be heard. There’s a line from a chorus that goes, “Open our ears, Lord, and help us to listen”. Certainly it is unrealistic for us to think we can respond to them all, but perhaps if we really, really listen we will hear the cry of that one “small person” we can help.

Horton is the hero of our story not just because of what he did for the Whos of Whoville, but because in the very beginning, he took the time to listen.

Do you hear a who? If so, who do you hear?

My mother was not quick to throw things away. Not that she was a hoarder, but she made good use of the things she had. I remember one day in particular standing in her kitchen, looking in her cupboard for a mug for my hot tea. (We often shared a cup of tea together. It’s from her that I got my love for tea.) As I saw a number of worn, chipped mugs, I looked at them disparagingly and thought to myself “Mom, why don’t you throw these old things away and get some new ones!” I didn’t say it, but I thought it.

Then came the day I am standing in my own kitchen and looking in my cupboard for my favorite mug, the one with a big chip in it! And suddenly I understood my mother. I didn’t want to throw that old mug away. I loved it. I wanted it. And I could still use it.

Sometimes I feel like an old mug. I am faded and worn. (As I get older, perhaps ‘worn out’ is a better description.) I am not perfect and have a number of flaws. I may even have a few chips and cracks. And sometimes I feel like I have been used up and no longer useful. Does anyone else feel that way?

But guess what? This old mug belongs to God! In fact, I think I am one of His favorites! He is not going to get rid of me! He loves me. He wants me. And He can still use me.

Yes, I do have an old mug. And so does God.

Ten years ago my daughter suggested I do a blog. She knows I like to dabble with writing and thought this would be a good outlet for me. She even set me up on WordPress and I quickly called it Mug of Hope. And it’s been sitting dormant ever since, waiting for me to write something!

A little over a year ago, my husband suddenly passed away. Cardiac arrest. His heart just stopped. And so did my life. At least that’s how I felt. Our lives were so intertwined. We had been married for almost 48 years and served in the ministry together. We worked together as we pastored the churches we served. We raised four children and were enjoying spoiling the grandkids. Also, because of my disability, which is degenerative, I was becoming more and more dependent on Paul. He did so much for me. I knew that now my life would never be the same. Among the many questions I had was what kind of ministry would I have now. No longer the “pastor’s wife”, no longer living next to the church, and unable to drive, what would I do now?

Then I remembered this, the blog. And I realized that now is the time for Mug of Hope. But this blog will not just be about me. My desire is to share thoughts of encouragement and inspiration from the Word of God and day-to-day experiences, to give hope when things seem hopeless. So grab your favorite mug of coffee or hot tea and join me here to share a Mug of Hope together!