One must experience it to appreciate and that is all I know to say!
Friday, October 12, 2007
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
A Better Day
Thankfully, today was a much better day than yesterday, but I am probably suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome--whatever that is! If I am not, I should be! Hopefully, Medicare will pay for my psychological treatments, if not maybe Medicaid will kick in and take care of them.
Seriously, life can sometimes be difficult to deal with, and when it is, it ain't fun by any stretch of the imagination! I thought that by this time in my life, everything would be running smoothly and the road would be bump-free, but that is what I get for thinking! But then, it ain't as bad as it could be and I know that!
Tomorrow begins in the court room, which means it is going to begin with lots of fun, I feel sure. I can hardly wait for the band to begin playing!! Why can't grown folk just do what they ought to do instead of making life so difficult for everyone--even themselves. Oh well--
We just finished Leftovers, our Wednesday night home group, which, as far as I can tell, was enjoyed by everyone. Both the pound cake that Data made and the casserole Annis made were delicious, as was evidenced by the leftovers (no pun intended!).
I hope to see you Sunday morning, if not before!
Your Pastor
Seriously, life can sometimes be difficult to deal with, and when it is, it ain't fun by any stretch of the imagination! I thought that by this time in my life, everything would be running smoothly and the road would be bump-free, but that is what I get for thinking! But then, it ain't as bad as it could be and I know that!
Tomorrow begins in the court room, which means it is going to begin with lots of fun, I feel sure. I can hardly wait for the band to begin playing!! Why can't grown folk just do what they ought to do instead of making life so difficult for everyone--even themselves. Oh well--
We just finished Leftovers, our Wednesday night home group, which, as far as I can tell, was enjoyed by everyone. Both the pound cake that Data made and the casserole Annis made were delicious, as was evidenced by the leftovers (no pun intended!).
I hope to see you Sunday morning, if not before!
Your Pastor
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Some Days Are Not as Much Fun as Others
Have you noticed that some days are not as much fun as others? Well, today has been one of those days for me; in fact, there was very little "fun" in it at all (the crises have been coming at me like machine gun bullets!). I did have lunch with Travis and his grandson, William, which was about the only bright spot in the entire "very few bright spots" day. Yes, I know that God didn't promise that we would always have sunshine, and I also know that many, many people had a much worse day that I have had, and I also know that this will probably not be my last "very few bright spots" day; even so, I am very thankful finally to be in my little cocoon, my place of solitude. The fact is one can know all the truth there is to know and still want to be alone and away from it all. Hopefully, all will be quiet for the rest of the night!
I do not know how these kinds of days affect you, but they sap my energy to the point of feeling wilted and depressed and weary and weak and frustrated and spent and really wanting to be alone; strangely, the older I become, the more I react this way. I do not know whether it is good or bad, but I do know that it is true--for me. I also know that we do have an enemy and, although, he has been defeated, he never ceases his attempts to distract God's children and, oftentimes, he is successful. Sadly, it sometimes takes a while to get back our bearings--to refocus--especially when the crises come like rapid fire, and he really enjoys that!
Strangely, just before I completed that last sentence, my phone rang and there was another crisis (10:05 PM) and I am wondering, "What is going on?" and I am praying, "Please, God, intervene and bring peace where there seems to be no peace!"
Thankfully, tomorrow is a new day and, hopefully, between now and then, there will be a good night's rest--
Your Pastor
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Saturday, October 6, 2007
Sunday's Message
"And this is His commandment, that we believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as He commanded us" (1 John 3:24). The Ten Commandments are impossible to keep; however, in comparison to this "His" commandment, they are a "piece of cake"!
Just for informational purposes, I offer this bit of trivia to you: in chapters 3, 4, and through verse three of chapter 5 (a total of 48 verses!), the word "love" is used FORTY-THREE times! I think this tells us something of the message John is attempting to convey to those who were being tempted to leave his teaching and join the ranks of those, who were teaching that Jesus did not come in the flesh!
I really hope to see you in the morning!
Your Pastor
PS: This message will be a tad longer than last Sunday's, but shorter than the previous week's.
Just for informational purposes, I offer this bit of trivia to you: in chapters 3, 4, and through verse three of chapter 5 (a total of 48 verses!), the word "love" is used FORTY-THREE times! I think this tells us something of the message John is attempting to convey to those who were being tempted to leave his teaching and join the ranks of those, who were teaching that Jesus did not come in the flesh!
I really hope to see you in the morning!
Your Pastor
PS: This message will be a tad longer than last Sunday's, but shorter than the previous week's.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Something I Have Never Before Seen!
Today, I was involved with the funeral service of a Reynolds man, who had spent much of his live serving our country in the Armed Forces, the US Army, to be precise. Unlike most services of this kind (with which I have been involved), there were some 50+ uniformed military personnel present at the service, including ranking officers, as in Colonels, even a General! The chaplain who spoke said this about the deceased soldier: "I want you to know that I have carefully thought through what I am about to say, so listen carefully: this man is the finest soldier I have ever known! Wow!
It was at the cemetery that I saw, what was unique to me; the honor guard folded Old Glory into its customary triangle,
and as they finished, a General walked up to one of the soldiers, and while standing at attention, he received the flag of this great nation from him, and before walking away, he saluted the flag. Then came the moment that took my breath: this General, dressed to the nines, holding the US Flag, as only a General could, walked over to the widow of the deceased soldier and knelt directly in front of her. While he was kneeling, he began to speak words to her, whispered words, but familiar words to me: "On behalf of the President of these United States of America and all the men and women, who serve in her Armed Forces, along with a grateful nation, I present this flag to you in honor and appreciation of your husband's faithful service to this great country!" Then he stood to his feet, bringing himself to "attention", and saluted Old Glory!
Now, I have seen many flags presented to widows of servicemen, even presented many myself, BUT this was the first time I had seen a General "do the honors" and I want to tell you that I was very proud to be an American!
You can call me foolish, if you like, but there was something about this General's kneeling before this widow and presenting the US Flag to her in honor of her late husband, that reminded me of Jesus kneeling before His disciples and presenting them with a towel and a basin of water.
Some leaders really are and they do not have to announce it to anyone because people simply follow them!
I will never forget what I saw today, nor will I ever forget that I, too, am called to kneel before His people and present them with a towel and a basin of water.
His!
Your Pastor
It was at the cemetery that I saw, what was unique to me; the honor guard folded Old Glory into its customary triangle,
and as they finished, a General walked up to one of the soldiers, and while standing at attention, he received the flag of this great nation from him, and before walking away, he saluted the flag. Then came the moment that took my breath: this General, dressed to the nines, holding the US Flag, as only a General could, walked over to the widow of the deceased soldier and knelt directly in front of her. While he was kneeling, he began to speak words to her, whispered words, but familiar words to me: "On behalf of the President of these United States of America and all the men and women, who serve in her Armed Forces, along with a grateful nation, I present this flag to you in honor and appreciation of your husband's faithful service to this great country!" Then he stood to his feet, bringing himself to "attention", and saluted Old Glory!Now, I have seen many flags presented to widows of servicemen, even presented many myself, BUT this was the first time I had seen a General "do the honors" and I want to tell you that I was very proud to be an American!
You can call me foolish, if you like, but there was something about this General's kneeling before this widow and presenting the US Flag to her in honor of her late husband, that reminded me of Jesus kneeling before His disciples and presenting them with a towel and a basin of water.
Some leaders really are and they do not have to announce it to anyone because people simply follow them!
I will never forget what I saw today, nor will I ever forget that I, too, am called to kneel before His people and present them with a towel and a basin of water.
His!
Your Pastor
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Fish Fry Wednesday PM
That is correct; we are having a fish fry Wednesday night at the Goddard residence. Immediately following we will discuss the current chapter of our book--"The Summation of the Christian Life"!
I hope to see you then!!
Grace and peace,
Your Pastor
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