A Norvell Note

A Sparrow and A Grasshopper

A Norvell Note

Vol. 27 No. 29 For the week of July 24, 2023

A Sparrow and A Grasshopper

As I approached my car in the parking lot, I noticed a sparrow diving over the top of the car and down the side back and forth. I asked, “Little bird, what are you doing on this hot afternoon.” I noticed a hefty grasshopper on the roof’s edge just above the passenger door when I got nearer. This yellow and green grasshopper looked very tasty to the little bird; however, he (or she) was almost 3 inches long. Not much smaller than the sparrow. “Little sparrow,” I said, “You sure are brave!”

The sparrow felt very confident in its hunting ability, and I imagined it saying to itself, “Wow! Wait until the other birds see what I’m bringing for lunch.” The scenario continued until I started the engine and pulled away.

As I exited the parking lot, I wondered if the sparrow had heard someone quote Matthew 6:26, “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.” And thought, “Lord, you’ve outdone Yourself today!” And if the grasshopper had heard the same thing and thought, “I’m not worried.”

Then, I thought about the car I drive, the food I eat, the water I drink, the salary I receive, the house where I live, the medical care I receive, and the community of family and friends who love me. I thanked Him.

I realized that, like the sparrow, sometimes I bite off (or try to) more than I can chew. The Lord gives me the confidence to try. Like the grasshopper, sometimes I am confronted with danger (often, I’m not even aware of it), but the Lord protects me and keeps me from harm.

Tom

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For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

That’s Enough for Today

A Norvell Note

Vol. 27 No. 28 For the week of July 17, 2023

That’s Enough for Today

Some days I look at all the tasks I have added to my schedule with confidence that I will accomplish everything. Then, I look at my week, and all the days with all the tasks, and with self-assurance, I take a deep breath, knowing I get it all done.

At the end of the day, I look at the list of tasks left undone, and disappointment fills my worn-out mind. In that quiet moment, I hear Jesus say, “That’s enough for today.”

As the days become a week and that nightly ritual repeats, I reflect on what I did and did not accomplish. I hear I again hear Jesus say, “That’s enough for this week.”

As you begin another week of activity, make your schedule, and list the duties for the day. Be confident that you will complete most of them. But if you review and discover you did not meet some obligations, be kind to yourself and listen for Jesus to say, “That’s good enough for today.”

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

Tom

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For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

Vol. 27 No. 27 For the week of July 10, 2023

Where Is the Sting?

For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. ⁵⁴When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

⁵⁵“Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”

⁵⁶The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. ⁵⁷But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁵⁸Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. (1Corinthians 15:53-58)

I have read this passage to provide comfort and consolation to many people, including myself, facing the victory and sting of death as a reminder that when this life ends, it really isn’t the end. I know it is true. I know that through Jesus, there is victory. Yet sometimes, I think death has won the victory, and I feel the sting of death.

I feel that death has won the victory when death keeps taking people I love. I feel that death has won the victory when there seems to be no end to death. I think death has won the victory when there is another cancer diagnosis or one has lost the ability to remember, speak, comprehend, or recognize the face of a loved one.

I feel the sting of death every time I see the tears of a daughter as she says goodbye to her mother and a mother who says goodbye to her daughter. I feel the sting of death when I hear a grown man describe his father as “He was the best man I’ve ever known.” The sting of death is in the tears of a spouse as she says, “I miss him so much.”

Sometimes, death appears victorious, and the sting feels natural, “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Tom

To follow updates on Junie, go here: welovejunieblue

For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

Let’s Celebrate!

A Norvell Note

Vol. 27 No. 26 For the week of July 3, 2023

Let’s Celebrate!

If we focus too much on what is happening and the events in the world that we can see and hear that frustrate, discourage, and disappoint us, we may miss the good things happening around us. I understand that it is not and will not be easy. It takes being intentional in our thinking and determined in our reflections. I am writing to myself as much as anyone.

If we focus too much on the sadness and disappointment of life, we may miss the joy and happiness that God places all around us.

If we give too much attention to the unrest and disturbances around us, we may overlook the times of rest and peace God gives us.

If we allow our brokenness and failures to overwhelm us, we may lose sight of the goodness that God has placed within us.

If we see only the death and loss that is all around us, we may miss the life of abundance that God has given us.

If we only see the negative and all that is wrong, we may miss the opportunities to celebrate.

Let’s celebrate!

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
    come before him with joyful songs.
Know that the Lord is God.
    It is he who made us, and we are his;
    we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations. (Psalm 100)

Tom

To follow updates on Junie, go here: welovejunieblue

For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

Bringing Kindness to Our Relationships

A Norvell Note

Vol. 27 No. 25 For the week of June 26, 2023

Bringing Kindness to Our Relationships

We are hearing and reading a lot about kindness. The loss of kindness. The need for kindness. The value of kindness. And the desire to return to a time when kindness was every day. If we are to see a revival of a kinder world, it will begin with you, and I treat our family, friends, work associates, and strangers with kindness.

I offer these as simple suggestions for bringing more kindness into our relationships.

Listen. Listen first. Listen intently. Listen often. Listen without distractions.

Call when you say you will. Visit when you say you will. Show up when you say you will. If you are running late, let your friends know. Be there when you need to.

Do what you say you will. Be dependable.

Say what you need to say, then stop.

Jesus said, “All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” (Matthew 5:37)

I think these actions of kindness will improve our relationships and make our part of the world a better place. However, we won’t know until we try.

Tom

To follow updates on Junie, go here: welovejunieblue

For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

No More Goodbyes

A Norvell Note

Vol. 27 No. 24 For the week of June 11, 2023

No More Goodbyes

I long for the day when I don’t have to say goodbye.

I try to live and stay in the present, but the moments always end. I love my friends and family so much that it hurts when I am away from them, and I do my best to enjoy every moment I have with them. But time with them is never enough.

I read Revelation 21:4 and try to imagine what it will be like when “He will wipe every tear from their (our) eyes. There will be no more deathor mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

I try to imagine it but can only long for a day when I won’t have to say goodbye to my children, grandchildren, extended family, and friends. I can only long for the day when I don’t hear that another friend has died, attend another funeral, or hug someone, not knowing when or if I’ll ever see them again.

I long for the day when there will be no more goodbyes. I don’t know what that will be like because goodbyes always come. Time with the people I love always comes to an end. Time together with family is never long enough.

Father, forgive me for being discontent with the times you allowed me to be with my family and friends. I know You have them in Your loving arms and that You are with them when I am not. Thank you for putting them in my life, for the time I have had with them, and for the times I will have with them in this life and the next. I am grateful, but I still long for the day when I don’t have to say goodbye.

Tom

To follow updates on Junie, go here: welovejunieblue

For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

No Phone

Vol. 27 No. 23 June 5, 2023

No Phone

While on vacation this week, my phone stopped working. It froze, and I could not get into it to do anything. I found someone to repair it, but in the meantime, I am on an island with no way to capture the scenic images around me. I have other tools that enable me to communicate with people when needed, but it’s not the same. However, I see some benefits.

Not having a camera forces me to stay in the moment. Instead of trying to capture the moment of the moon reflecting off the ocean, I could watch it in real time. Instead of being concerned about saving the moment for the future, I simply enjoyed the moment.

Instead of being concerned about catching the smile on one of my granddaughter’s faces, I simply enjoyed being close enough to see the smiles.

Being camera-less allows me to focus on the ocean breeze, the waves crashing to the shore, and the sun setting over the mountains behind me. Instead of trying to preserve the moment, I enjoy the moment.

Not having my phone in my pocket keeps me focused on the people right in front of me instead of our conversation being interrupted or diverted by the vibration or the ding from my phone.

Don’t misunderstand; I am not anti-device. On the contrary, I appreciate the devices that make it possible to push a button and send a message, call a friend on the other side of the world, or press another button and share these Notes. The technological tools we have at our disposal are greatly appreciated, but the people I love and the world God has created are more important.

Tom

To follow updates on Junie, go here: welovejunieblue

For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

We’re Still Doing Life Together

A Norvell Note

Vol. 27 No. 22 May 30, 2023

We’re Still Doing Life Together

We did life together. We are still doing life together.

Through the years, we shared meals, celebrated, grieved, laughed, and cried together. We passed through the seasons of life together.

We shared graduations, weddings, births, and deaths. We shed tears of joy and tears of sorrow. We laugh together. We stay in touch from a long distance. We listen intently for details as we learn of an illness or an upcoming medical procedure. We sigh as we embrace one another, not knowing when or if we will see one another again.

We hear a song that reminds us of when we were together. We see a cartoon or hear a joke that recalls the times we laughed together. We enjoy a meal that reminds us of when we sat across the table from friends. We smile as we read a text saying, “We love you.”

We greet each other with hugs, handshakes, and fist pumps. We smile and nod as we glance across the room and speak without words. We sit silently and grieve with one another when we have no words to express our sorrow. Then, we stand and applaud as we share the accomplishments of our children and grandchildren.

We cannot always be together and don’t stay in touch as much as we promised, but we try. We don’t always remember birthdays, anniversaries, or family celebrations, but we try. We can’t always answer the phone when they call, make it to significant events when they happen, or show up like we wish we could, but we try.

I am grateful that we are still doing life together through life’s highs and lows, victories and defeats.

Tom

To follow updates on Junie, go here: welovejunieblue

For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

Show Up

A Norvell Note

Vol. 27 No. 21 May 22, 2023

Show Up

On a recent No Small Endeavor podcast, Lee Camp interviews Father Greg Boyle. These are Lee’s notes on the interview: “In the 80s and 90s, the city of Los Angeles was ravaged by what is now known as the “decade of death,” a period of unprecedented gang violence, peaking at 1,000 killings in 1992 alone. It was in the midst of this unrest, fear, and finger-pointing that Father Greg Boyle became pastor of the poorest Catholic parish in the city, in order to live and work among gang members.” Since that time, he has conducted 250 funerals.

The theme of the conversation is, “How do you reteach love to a community that society has deemed unlovable?” Boyle’s response, “It’s about showing up it’s not about changing people.”

What an insight!

“It’s about showing up it’s not about changing people.”

“It’s about showing up.” Be there. Listen to them. Hear them. Show them you care about them. Love them when they fail. Love them when they succeed. Love them when they don’t love themselves.

“It’s not about changing people.” Yes, we want them to improve and correct their mistakes. But we cannot change them, and we need to stop trying. Instead, see them for who they are, accept them for who they are, and let that be enough.

Jesus showed up. He loved. He taught. He showed them how to live. People changed because they saw something in him that convinced them to live differently.

Thank you, Greg Boyle, for living like Jesus in your community.

“It’s about showing up it’s not about changing people.” Let these words shape our lives this week.

Tom

To follow updates on Junie, go here: welovejunieblue

For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

The World Didn’t Stop

A Norvell Note

Vol. 27 No. 20

May 15, 2023

The World Didn’t Stop

I admit that sometimes I take myself and what I do too seriously. I remind myself of this verse often. “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.” (Romans 12:3)

Here is an example. Through the years of writing A Norvell Note, I have taken getting an article written and posted on time every week. However, there have been times due to sickness, fatigue, or travel when that did not happen. Unfortunately, that’s what happened this week, so I’m two days late posting this week’s Note.

Guess what? The world did not stop spinning. The sun came up on both days. Most of the world did not notice, nor did it matter. But it matters to me. It is important to me.

Yes, there are times that I think of myself and what I do as more highly than I ought. So I’m working on that. But when I say I’ll do something, I want to do it right, or at least to the best of my ability.

There’s another verse that I often repeat to myself. “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” (Colossians 3:23)

I didn’t expect the world to stop turning or even one person to notice I was late posting an article. I don’t think of myself or what I do that highly.

However, I am grateful I have something I enjoy and consider important enough to “work at it with all my heart, as working for the Lord.” I hope you do, too, because it changes how you live when you realize you are working for the Lord.

Tom

To follow updates on Junie, go here: welovejunieblue

For past articles, go here: A Norvell Note.

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