Fruits of the Spirit

The weather outside is frightful and 'tiz the season of holiday stress but if we focus on the reason for the season - Jesus - and remember why he came to this earth, to set us free from our sin, the holiday will seem a whole lot less stressful and more of a time to be grateful and thankful.  

 This is truly a time for believers to stand firm and not to be subject again to the yoke of slavery.  The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness and faithfulness, what better time to show the fruits of the Spirit then the holidays, and as far as the weather goes....since I've no place to go, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!  Did I say snow?  I meant let the sun/son shine and shine and shine!

A lot to be thankful for...

Thanksgiving seems to get lost somewhere between Halloween and Christmas and that’s a shame, because it truly is a time for us to reflect on God and all that He has given us.

What if God wouldn’t take the time to bless us today because we didn’t take the time thank Him yesterday? What if God decided to stop leading us tomorrow because we choose not to follow Him today? What if we never saw another flower bloom because we complained about the rain?

Life is filled with blessings my friends, many things to be thankful for not only on Thanksgiving, but every single day.

Let’s purpose us in our hearts this day to thank Him for today, to rejoice in it, to recognize that this is His day, and to be mindful of His Word. What if God took away His message because we failed to read it and to listen? I, for one, am thankful for His Word that we live in a country that allows us freedom of religion, that the doors of our churches are open to receive us in love.

During this time of “Thanksgiving” let us remember to love one another and to care for others in need, to be thankful that God doesn’t answer our prayers the way we answer His call for service, that He doesn’t meet our needs the way we give Him our lives. Giving thanks is what Thanksgiving is really all about, let’s start by thanking Him for the cross.

(This article first appeared in Crossroads Newspaper Nov. 2001)

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, not just because it's a great feast and time to be with family but because it's a time to gather your thoughts, to really think about those things you have in your life that you are thankful more.  Every day God showers us with His blessings and His love.

Throughout the month of November, several people on Face Book are daily listing things they are 'thankful' for.  The Bible is filled with scriptures that talk about giving thanks. 

It is good to give thanks to the Lord and to sing praises to His name, to declare His loving kindness in the morning and his faithfulness by night.  He is my rock and my salvation and that is something to be thankful for.

Who put the "X" in X-ray?

Three weeks ago I fell and injured my right hand and thumb. At first it didn’t hurt all that much but after three or four days, I noticed that my thumb was really swollen.  I thought it might be broken so off to the doctor I went.  The first thing my  doctor did was to x-ray my hand to confirm that it wasn’t broken  Luckily, it was just a sprain.  But, I was told that a sprain takes longer to heal than a break.  Then I developed ‘trigger’ thumb.  Now, I’m wearing a splint!  It’s not easy using only one hand so, maybe there is no ‘luckily’ here.  A break or a sprain -- either way it spells ouch!

However, this little mishap  made me think about x-rays and how they got their name.  After I left the doctor’s office, hand throbbing, I decided to do a little research on the subject of x-rays and found that in 1895, German inventor, Wilhelm Roentgen was conducting experiments with the conduction of electrical charges through gases in a vacuum tube.  Much to his astonishment, Roentgen observed that radiation passed through objects that were usually opaque.  The applications were obvious, but Roentgen didn’t understand how or why radiation worked.  For this reason, Roentgen named his invention x Strahlen (X-ray).  He used “X” as in algebraic formulas, a modest admission that he couldn’t explain his own discovery.

I have no reason for passing this information on other than to kill time while I’m waiting for my thumb to heal.  And your right, should I really be on the computer, typing with a sprained hand and thumb?  Perhaps, I need to spend less time thinking about inventions and more time talking to God.  Less time writing about nonsense stuff and more time in knee-mail!

Oh, thanks to my friend Betty for giving me the book “Who Put The Butter in Butterfly? (And other fearless investigations into our illogical language) by David Feldman.  Both Mr. Feldman and Betty helped me in writing this blog.

Loafing Can Be FUN

Wow, I can't believe that my last post was in June -- what have I been doing over summer?  Not blogging -- that's for sure.  I guess I've been 'loafing'.  James Thurber said, "It is better to have loaf and lost then to never have loafed at all."  It's been an excellent summer for loafing, for puttering, for planting, for shopping, for lunching with friends, playing with grandchildren, sitting on the patio soaking up some rays, spending time with God, for cleaning, napping and reading! I guess I haven't been loafing at all! Ah, I sure have enjoyed my summer of loafing!  PS - note that I posted two blogs this month, already.

No Charge for Prayer

I sure do get a lot of email advertisements (on Face Book, too).  One in particular catches my eye every time, it’s a prayer link.  When  you click it on, they will pray for you -- the catch, it’ll cost you.  I’m  glad God does not charge to hear our prayers!  If we were praying without ceasing as instructed in the Bible, we’d go broke for sure.

“We ought to act with God in the greatest simplicity, speaking to Him frankly and plainly, and imploring His assistance in all our affairs, just as they happen.”  Brother Lawrence

I’m so glad that we can be ourselves with God and that He cares about what we are doing, that He hears even the simplest of prayers and I’m really thankful that we can offer up prayers free of charge!

September 1, 2013

Lunch With God

Here's a story worth sharing.  Enjoy my friends.

A little boy wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his suitcase with Twinkies and a six pack of Root beer and he started his journey. When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old woman. She was sitting in the park just staring at some pigeons.

The boy sat down next to her and opened his suitcase. He was about to take a drink from his root beer when he noticed that the old lady looked hungry, so he offered her a Twinkie. She gratefully accepted it and smiled at him.

Her smile was so pretty that the boy wanted to see it again, so he offered her a root beer. Again, she smiled at him. The boy was delighted! They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but they never said a word. As it grew dark, the boy realized how tired he was and he got up to leave, but before he had gone more than a few steps, he turned around, ran back to the old woman, and gave her a hug. She gave him her biggest smile ever.

When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. She asked him, ”What did you do today that made you so happy?”  He replied, “I had  lunch with God.” But before his mother could respond, he added, “You know what? She’s got the most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen!”

Meanwhile, the old woman, also radiant with joy, returned to her home. Her son was stunned by the look of peace on her face and he asked, “Mother, what did you do today that made you so happy?”  She replied, “I ate Twinkies in the park with God.”  However, before her son responded, she added, “You know, he’s much younger than I expected.”

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.

(Author Unknown - Crossroads – April 2001)