Tag Archives: life

September 18, 2023 · 3:56 pm

My Father’s Chair

Oddly, one of my favorite childhood memories is that my father’s reading chair. It was softly padded, unlike the hard wooden desk seats at school. And it was covered in a wonderfully warm brown textured woven fabric. It had a separate footrest with wheels so that it could roll easily across the old wooden floors. I remember a time when I was called into my father’s room so that he could review my most recent report card and my progress at school.

It felt like I was entering the inner sanctum of our home, a very special place. As I knocked softly, my father motioned with his hand for me to enter and then he gently pointed to the footstool at his side. I took my seat next to him. Nodding, he reached for my report card, glanced it over slowly, and then began our conversation.

Today, as a Christian life coach, I realize that this memory serves me well as I grow in my Christian walk. It gives me the ability to imagine that, as my heavenly Father, God wants to talk with me and invites me to sit with Him on His throne.

As I share this story with my clients, I realize that many Christians do not understand the purpose or the meaning of being invited into God’s throne room. Today, we are going to explore the Biblical understanding of God’s throne and throne room, and perhaps most importantly, I’ll share with you 5 ways that you can enter His throne room and draw closer to God.

Introduction

From the Old Testament Bible, the Hebrew word for throne means a seat of honor and dignity. It also represents one’s power and authority to rule a people and a kingdom. For example, King Solomon’s throne was, according to Hebrew tradition (www.chabad.org), located in the Lebanon Forest just outside the City of Jerusalem. It was made from ivory and overlaid with the precious gold metal. His throne is described in 1 Kings 10:18-20:

18 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with the best gold.

19 The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round behind: and there were stays on either side on the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the stays.

20 And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps: there was not the like made in any kingdom.

Here in the throne room, King Solomon met with his counselors, maintained the peace of his kingdom, administered matters of law and justice, and saw visiting ambassadors and dignitaries. Solomon’s throne reflected his position, power, and authority.

Purpose and Meaning

But what about God and His throne room? The Bible tells us that the throne room is where God dwells and reigns as King over all creation. It is a place of great power and majesty, where God’s glory is revealed. And, although, the Bible does not give us a specific physical location for the throne room of God, it does describe it as being in the third heaven, above the earth in the City of God.

The Bible gives us important glimpses into the throne room of God (e.g. Psalm 104:1-4 & Psalm 99:1-9). Notably, in the book of Revelation, the apostle John sees a vision in which God is seated on a throne of jasper and surrounded by twenty-four elders, four living creatures, and seven lamps of fire burning (Revelation 4:2-11). the throne room is sometimes described as being a place of great light and glory, and other times as being a place of great mystery and wonder.

The book of Isaiah adds to our understanding. The prophet Isaiah sees a vision in which God is seated on a high and lofty throne, surrounded by seraphim. filled with smoke, and seraphim crying out, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts! (Isaiah 6:1-5).”

Although there are many more bible passages about God’s throne, these descriptions suggest that the throne room of God is a place of great beauty and splendor. And we learn a lot from these descriptions, especially about God’s very nature. For example, we find that:

  • God is holy and majestic. We should approach him with reverence and awe.
  • God is all-powerful and all-knowing. He is in control of everything that happens in the world.
  • God is loving and merciful. He wants to have a relationship with us.
  • God is just and righteous. He will judge all people according to their deeds.
  • God is a God of grace and forgiveness. He is willing to forgive us if we repent of our sins.

Suggestions & Summary

Without a doubt, the throne room of God is a place of great mystery and wonder. Perhaps, most importantly, because of the sacrifice that Jesus made on Calvary’s cross (Hebrews 4:16), it is the place where we can bring our prayers and requests to God and know that He hears us and will answer us.

There are many ways to draw closer to God’s throne. Here are a few suggestions:

  1. Pray. Prayer is the most direct way to communicate with God. When we pray, we are inviting God into our lives and asking for His help and guidance.
  2. Read the Bible. The Bible is God’s word to us. When we read the Bible, we are learning about God and His character.
  3. Attend church. Church is a place where we can worship God and connect with other believers. It is also a place where we can learn more about God and His Word.
  4. Serve others. When we serve others, we are imitating God’s love and compassion. This is a powerful way to draw closer to Him.
  5. Spend time in silence and reflection. This can be a time to listen to God’s voice and to be still in His Presence.

As I sit and think about the days passed, the memory of my earthly father sitting in his reading chair reminds me not only of his counsel to succeed and the commitment involved but it reminds me of his love for me; a time of closeness and understanding. Importantly, the memory also extends itself into my spiritual walk and encourages me at the age of 73, that, because of Jesus, our Heavenly Father invites us to enter and sit with Him in His throne room to talk about our concerns, share with us His direction, His love, and His wisdom.

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September 8, 2020 · 3:58 pm

Knocking on Heaven’s Door

A few months ago, our Pastor encouraged us to think about ways of how the stay-at-home COVID-19 mandate could be a blessing. He suggested that God could and would open a door of opportunity for anyone that asked.

As I sat before my laptop screen listening to his message, I felt a nudge inside of me. I wondered if it were possible or even appropriate for a 70-year-old retired professor of communication arts to even consider such a challenge.

The thoughts came: What would a door of opportunity look like? What would it sound like? Who and what would be on the other side of that door? Oddly, the thoughts made me nervous and yet excited. With raised eyebrows, I questioned: Was this challenge really meant for me?

Six months later, I am now a 180 Advisor and Virtual Learning Coach. I am glad that I accepted our Pastor’s challenge. The challenge, however, was not without an inner fight and resulted in many a long nights, bleary eyes, and weary bones.

Perhaps, it’s best to start with telling you what a 180 Advisor is and what it is not. A 180 Advisor is not a pyramid scheme, a swindler’s dream or confidence game. Rather, I find it to be an activity involving both extreme mental and physical efforts. It can draw both the best and worst out of me, so, keeping my eyes open and catching myself from the temptation of bulldozing others out of my way remains high on my must-remember-to-do list.

The name 180 Advisor came from John, my daughter’s beau. John’s work involves helping businesses through financial crisis. He told me that there exists a huge difference between a 360 degree and a 180-degree turn. One leaves you going in the same dizzy direction headed toward crisis whereas the other, 180, means a turnabout, a shift, a complete change in the direction and thought in which one is engaged. I adopted the name immediately and asked his permission to become one of his 180 agents. John agreed.

This excitement helped to balance the anxiety that had recently crept in as the stay-at-home COVID-19 mandate had closed all my avenues of social interaction. Our library volunteer manager wrote an exceptionally long and sad goodbye as the City closed our library’s doors. My Homeowners Owners Association banned all public meetings. The distance to my family and neighbors’ homes grew longer with the passing of each day. And, although, the broadcasted public announcements continually reassured me that I was not alone and that separation did not mean isolation, I could not help feeling I was on my own.

It was in this gradually growing state of mindfulness that I answered my cell phone on that early April morning. The person on the other side of the phone greeted me with her familiar term of endearment “My sister,” and went on to ask: “how are you? I was wondering if you had time to talk.” And talk we did. And I’m glad we did. I still have the notes I took during our conversation about teaching and teachers and developing online training because of COVID-19 and the need to shift from classroom instruction to online using computers and the Internet. The pivot was shaking the field education like a 6.0 earthquake.

A few weeks ago, I gave my first online Zoom presentation to a university in Florida. It went very well. I felt like a 180 Advisor—that I am making a difference. And, best of all, I have been invited back next month to provide additional faculty training in online pedagogical practices for educators. This was not an opportunity that I could have foreseen. It is, however, a personal turnaround for which I am grateful and thank God for opening this door of engagement. I had forgotten most of my training in education and so it forced me to reconnect to theory and to practice and, most importantly, people.

In addition to my consulting work, I am also opening a new series of art on my Art Journaling Facebook page connected to my blog here at Living Life’s Way. Over the last seventy years, I’ve learned a lot about life and the 3P’s—people, places, and pets. And, apparently, a need exists for older Christian women sharing life experiences with younger women in those areas! — (we’ll talk more about that later).

The opening verse is taken from Philippians 1:11 (TLB). “May you always be doing those good, kind things that show you are a child of God, for this will bring much praise and glory to the Lord.”

My hope is that younger women everywhere can learn from both my successes as a new creature in Christ as well as the hard-earned lessons from my missteps as God’s new creation.

God’s blessings and peace!

Dr. Buck / 180 Advisor / Virtual Learning Coach

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December 13, 2018 · 8:05 pm

A Walk with Kingsley

A week before Thanksgiving holiday, I received an unexpected knock at my front door. It was Charles, a neighbor who lived just one courtyard over to my west.  As I opened my door, I noticed that he  held a dog leash loosely in his hand along with a small disposable waste bag. Kingsley, his small cocker spaniel companion dog, however, was absent from his side.

“I’m going on vacation,” said Charles with a squinted look of anxiety mixed with anticipation in his eyes, “and wondered if you might be interested in sitting Kingsley.”

“Yes, of course,” I replied excitedly, “I’m available Saturday early afternoon before the holiday. Would that work?”

Dog sitting has been a hobby that I’ve enjoyed as I’ve gotten older. As a young girl and later young woman, however, dog sitting was not always my top choice of things to do. I had been bitten as a young girl of  7. I did not know the dog; it was a stranger; and so was I. During a visit, the dog snuck up from behind me and sank its fangs into the back of my left thigh.

Not much attention was given to the bite as it was a neighbor’s dog, not a deep bite, and the bleeding stopped after a few minutes. Once home, my mom washed it out with soap and water, applied a bandage, and kissed my forehead then sent me on my way. Although inspected, cleaned, bandaged, and comforted, the bite continued to be sore for sometime. I’ve never quite got over the animals first response to me and my inability to clearly communicate.

What I noticed immediately about Kingsley, however, was that he was not the type of dog that used his teeth as first response to strangers. I was glad to learn that he liked fur brushing and petting better. Our first walk together went very well, however, I learned that his second defense was stubbornness.

As we walked together, I in lead position, Kingsley followed behind me by three steps. We walked well together until I passed the first small bush to my right. At this point, he stalled. “Come on, Kingsley. Come on, good boy!” I said gently with a short quick snap of the leash. He replied by sitting, front paws dug into the ground beneath him.

Kingsley had gotten it into his mind that he was on his own. Freedom had made him stubborn. The garden had become his kingdom. I tried to reign him in with a few clicks of my tongue. Evidently, tongue clicking was not in his vocabulary. For despite the many times as I clicked, there simply was no response except for the strong pull on his leash to the right.

“Come on, Kingsley. Come on, boy!” I said with a slightly quicker and stronger tug. Kingsley remained distracted; he had forgotten that our original plan was to walk around the gated community of approximately a quarter mile. Although it took several tries to communicate with Kingsley my desire, he eventually showed himself as a smart and gentle animal.

Through our walks together that week, I learned that like Kingsley, there are those things around me that can distract, detour, and even disturb me from my objective. Some distractions are lovely: the smell of a flower, the warmth of the sun, the sounds of the birds; these should be especially appreciated when life seems to be racing. And then again, some distractions should be simply ignored.

Once Kingsley realized that I was communicating my need to move along, I was very thankful for having him at my side; it was like having a good friend and companion. After Charles picked him up, I wanted to do a mixed media project that would present the wonder of a walk with a good companion.

What does companionship look like, what does it feel like? I’ll use one of my monoprints as a background; add some pattern and texture; an object; and, see if I can capture the element of companionship that only a dog like Kingsley can offer. The title of this piece is: A Walk With Kingsley. The theme is companionship in life. The thumbnail at top of page is a rough draft of concept. Here is the journal entry with text:

 

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