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Mother’s Day… all my troubles seem so far away…oh, I believe in Mother’s Day

10 May
Anna Jarvis

Anna Jarvis

Anna Jarvis was on to something when she came up with the idea to dedicate a day to honor moms once a year.  Smart thinking… I wonder what her motives where….. You know, I wonder if she was a stinker in her childhood and finally grew up to realize that her mother put up with a lot and she was extremely grateful or maybe she did something really wrong and her mother liked to hold it over her head but was softened each year by the day long celebration or possibly Ms. Jarvis was a mother to a bunch of kids and felt like she needed the appreciation and started the day to get some. Actually, that sounds like something I might do.  I’m guessing that Anna’s motives were pure and she truly appreciated her mother… I would guess her mother was one who resembled a Proverbs 31:28-31 mother, (her children call her blessed) therefore she wanted to celebrate her life and love.

I’m a believer in Mother’s Day and I think a day to honor Mom is great.  Although my family is pretty great about letting me know I’m loved, I think there is something missing from Mother’s Day.  My family may be good about it but there are many mothers out there whose kids or husbands need that reminder to give mom a little of their appreciation.  Commercials on television, posters or sales in stores are reminders to some, but I’m thinking out of the box here… I think that when Ms. Jarvis began her day of celebrating Mom she forgot the ever important gift toting mascot.  You know,  Christmas has Santa, Easter has the bunny…. I think Mother’s Day, a very credible day to honor Mom, needs someone that moms can make requests to.  Now, I’m not advocating gifts of materialism as a sign of love…. in fact, lets make this Mother’s Day mascot have a financial limit… I’m thinking more on the lines of gifts of meaning… Like this would be my list:

  1. Sleep in Late (not happening)
  2. A two-hour long massage…okay, I’ll even take 10 minutes
  3. A restaurant or meal that I choose- even if it no one else wants it
  4. No one in the house argues… everyone is sickening sweet to each other
  5. Everyone watches Cold Case Files or American Justice on A&E and loves it
  6. The house is quiet unless requested otherwise

MotherGooseSee what I mean?  Those things aren’t costly… mothers_dayat least not costly in monetary terms and Mother’s Day would seem so trouble free.   So now who do we take them to?  What should this mascot be?  A goose, maybe?  (very motherly like)   How about a kangaroo? (Another motherly figure) Possibly even some rough looking muscle guy?  Or how about a little bird?  ( “A little bird told me….”)  I don’t know.  And what about the name?  Maybe “Mother’s Day Mother Goose” or “Mama Flyer” or “Mother’s Day Sparrow”… Or better yet.. It would be someone who could really get the job done…. Super Nanny Jo!

Supernanny Jo Frost

Supernanny Jo Frost

Okay, I realize that appreciation comes from the heart… there is not someone, or some mascot, who can create appreciation for a mom or anyone else for that matter.  It has to come from within for it to be true.  So if I want any of these things, it might not hurt to ask, but that will not be my true sign of appreciation.  For my kids to one day say, ” Thanks, Mom.  You’ve helped me be the person I am today by setting an example of how to be giving, loving and true follower of our Creator,”that would be a great gift of appreciation and that would be the Mother’s Day when I would truly feel that my troubles were far away.

(A special Thank You to my mom for setting a wonderful example!)

Proverbs 31

28 Her children stand and bless her.
Her husband praises her:
29 “There are many virtuous and capable women in the world,
but you surpass them all!”

30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last;
but a woman who fears the Lord will be greatly praised.
31 Reward her for all she has done.
Let her deeds publicly declare her praise.

 
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Posted by on May 10, 2009 in Devotions, Faith, Life Stories

 

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Respect the Chickens…..and other fine May holidays

05 May

On Sunday night our plane placed us back in the comforts of home.  However, with that landing we lost the luxuries of the lack of reality and responsibility that we somewhat achieved as we enjoyed a week long family getaway.  Well, we did have to face reality to a certain degree as we watched my husband’s niece get married and we did have to be responsible parents and take a 100_0276daughter to the emergency room while on vacation (a great story for another time) but still… you know what I’m talking about.  Vacations are nice.  I also found out that when we arrived home on Sunday night we also were ending our family time by beginning National Family Week… we were just ahead of our time.  (It also makes you wonder if National Day of Prayer began during National Family week intentionally… I can think of plenty of reasons why it might have… impatience, arguements, etc)  Anyway, I can spend this week enjoying the memories of our past week as a family…

So many holidays and such little time.  I love finding out about little known special days….Today, Cinco de Mayo…. Tomorrow- The Great American Grump Out (yes, refrain from getting your grump on for one whole day)

But there is more… Yesterday, May 4,  was Respect the Chicken Day.  Though there weren’t any local events to celebrate it… or atleast none that I was aware of… I could definitely picture a parade or a bunch of poultry holding signs and bawking …

genisis1Please Respect the Chickens... Okay, so let’s think of the good things about the chickens and respect them….. Chickens are cute and fuzzy and are great at alarming the senses as they wake you in the early morning … they provide pleasantry to the eye as the rooster’s red comb…..  Okay, I can’t do it… I can’t respect the chicken or at least not in the way intended by the poultry concern people… Chickens are only cute and fuzzy  like when they are like two days old then they become incredibly awkward and ugly and I’m not even sure their mother’s think they’re cute….. they are only great at alarming the senses as they chase you around the barnyard trying to peck your head off…and the rooster’s red comb thing.. just gross… I can respect the chicken at Sonny’s Bar-B-Que though.  It is tasty.

I can also respect other chickens… or at least a certain kind I read about yesterday on Respect the Chickens day.  I was reading in I Kings about Elijah and the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel.  My personal paraphrase is this…. Elijah challenged hundreds of prophets of the false god, Baal.  He challenged Baal to burn up the altar and of course, Baal let his prophets down.  God, on the other hand was an incredible showman and lit up the altar, consuming even the rocks, after it had been drenched in water.  When everyone saw this they fell flat on their faces and declared God as the one true God…  These people who fell on the ground in fear for their lives after they had seen God at work are who I will call chickens… but with respect….. so why respect them? well, because they had been standing up against God but when God showed himself they were afraid and threw away their pride and bowed before God and stated who they would worship… but there is more they were asked to prove this by gathering up the false prophets who had been leading and teaching them and bring them back to be killed… those “chickens” had to show that they were serious and they did… they had been knee-knocking scared but could have run away or could have been stubborn and prideful but they were “chicken” enough to respect God’s power

So I do respect some chickens… those who respect God enough to know that He doesn’t fool around with who He says He is..nor does He fool around with his power….

imagesEnjoy the sixth of May and remember to leave your grumpy at the door!

1 Kings 18:16-40

16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah. 17 When he saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel?”

18 “I have not made trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “But you and your father’s family have. You have abandoned the LORD’s commands and have followed the Baals. 19 Now summon the people from all over Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

20 So Ahab sent word throughout all Israel and assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel. 21 Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.”
But the people said nothing.

22 Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only one of the LORD’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. 23 Get two bulls for us. Let them choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. 24 Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by fire—he is God.”
Then all the people said, “What you say is good.”

25 Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one of the bulls and prepare it first, since there are so many of you. Call on the name of your god, but do not light the fire.” 26 So they took the bull given them and prepared it.
Then they called on the name of Baal from morning till noon. “O Baal, answer us!” they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And they danced around the altar they had made.

27 At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said. “Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” 28 So they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed. 29 Midday passed, and they continued their frantic prophesying until the time for the evening sacrifice. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention.

30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the LORD, which was in ruins. 31 Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come, saying, “Your name shall be Israel.” 32 With the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD, and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two seahs [c] of seed. 33 He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Then he said to them, “Fill four large jars with water and pour it on the offering and on the wood.”

34 “Do it again,” he said, and they did it again.
“Do it a third time,” he ordered, and they did it the third time. 35 The water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench.

36 At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. 37 Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.”

38 Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.

39 When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, “The LORD -he is God! The LORD -he is God!”

40 Then Elijah commanded them, “Seize the prophets of Baal. Don’t let anyone get away!” They seized them, and Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley and slaughtered there.

 
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Posted by on May 5, 2009 in Devotions, Faith, Videos

 

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Everybody Loves Anoop……. and Susan Boyle…..

23 Apr

anoop-and-rayEverybody loves Anoop… I mean Raymond, no, I mean Anoop… Gosh, I get them so confused!   Apparently Ray Romano and American Idol contestant, Anoop Desai are not related but bear a striking resemblance and apparently, it is only Ray that everybody likes.  Anoop was voted off of American Idol last night along with Lil Rounds. I’ve really tried to like Anoop and he seems like a nice enough guy, but I will have to say I was glad that he went home.   My favorites are still in the running.  Next week’s genre…. rap….. Not really, but my family had a good time leading me to believe that one.

Another interesting singer was introduced to the world, via internet and television, this past week or so.  A lady by the name ofsusan-boyle-b_0 Susan Boyle stunned an audience of disbelievers in her singing ability and led them to a surprising standing ovation.  Her younger, Mrs. Doubtfire look raised eyebrows and shook heads from those who tend to believe that appearance is what creates ability.  Her singing debut was on a British television show which Simon Cowell also plays an all too truthful judge.  However, there is a rumor that this lady was planted by Simon and maybe so, you’ll see the look on his face when she sings… his smile is wonderful… but not quite convincing that he had known she could do what she was there to do.

So, if he placed her on stage for ratings… who knows?  And I’m not sure it really matters…. She did a beautiful job.  The crowd didn’t believe in her but because she was given the chance, she was able to prove herself and the audience learned a lesson.

But I noticed something as I was reading the other day that took me back to this video.  I’ve often wondered why someone who set up the death of another for a lustful gain..David… would be called a man after God’s own heart.  I stumbled on scripture the other day that may lend some explanation of it.  David was trying to honor Jonathan and Saul and asked for any descendants of Jonathan to be brought to him.  Jonathan’s son was crippled and David gave him a royal inheritance that might never have been his due to his physical appearance.  Looking through scripture we see that God always seems to highlight those that others think are not worthy …. David himself, Moses, Jacob, Esther, Levi, Fishermen, children, Mary Magdalene, etc, etc, etc (The King and I is on in the background…etc.)… so maybe that is the heart of God… believing in those who the world sees as less than…

In the video, watch Simon’s smile in two parts.. first, the smile with his face resting in his hands… I picture that smile being on the face of God as he looks at us as we are in the place where he wants us to be… in his will… It is a look of satisfaction and love……Then there is the second smile (A part of me hopes he did plant Susan Boyle on that stage)… the smile of pride in knowing that others finally see what he does… I picture that smile being on the face of God when he places us in a position that either we don’t think we can live up to or others don’t think we can live up to…and he smiles when others see what he sees in us….We have an incredible God who looks beyond appearance and sees the person….Thanks for smiling, Simon!

You can find the video of Susan in the right column on this page.

2 Samuel 9

David and Mephibosheth

1 David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”

2 Now there was a servant of Saul’s household named Ziba. They called him to appear before David, and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?”
“Your servant,” he replied.

3 The king asked, “Is there no one still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show God’s kindness?”
Ziba answered the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in both feet.”

4 “Where is he?” the king asked.
Ziba answered, “He is at the house of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.”

5 So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel.

6 When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honor.
David said, “Mephibosheth!”
“Your servant,” he replied.

7 “Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.”

8 Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?”

9 Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. 10 You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master’s grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

11 Then Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table like one of the king’s sons.

12 Mephibosheth had a young son named Mica, and all the members of Ziba’s household were servants of Mephibosheth. 13 And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table, and he was crippled in both feet.

 
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Posted by on April 23, 2009 in Devotions, Faith, Fun, Videos

 

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Big Hero, Lasting Legacy, God at Work… all in a Tiny Baby Girl

16 Apr

preemieToday I saw God at work. I saw a tiny, little hero leave a legacy in just a few, short hours.  The three pound hero was a beautiful baby girl who we’ve been praying for ever since we found out that her parents were expecting her… and surprisingly expecting her twin brother too.  The expectant dad and I work together and I am fortunately a part of a very close staff.  We were excited enough to find out that they were going to be first time parents, but when they added the twin part of the equation to the pregnancy all of us on staff were elated and couldn’t wait for the June babies to arrive……I already loved those little ones as if they were family… in fact, I was ready for those little ones to call me “Aunt Nancy.”

Several months ago, though, our friends received discouraging news about their babies.  It seemed that there was some trouble with one of the babies and things didn’t have a great outlook. With the discouraging news of low amniotic fluid for baby girl, came low percentages of the chance for her to make it to 24 weeks… likely both babies would not make it.  Eventually bed rest was the only solution and for two months, mom and dad have lived at the hospital.  It has become their second home.   Prayers went out, time went by and baby girl surprised us all.  She was doing remarkably well.  She was growing and moving and regardless of the fluid situation was doing quite well.  Baby boy was growing too, and according to experts should have been much bigger than his sister but she was holding her own.

Weeks passed and 24 weeks was long gone… each day was a milestone and each additional week was a miracle.  The goal was to get the babies to at least 31 weeks and hopefully to 34 weeks but knowing that at anytime mom could be rushed to the OR.

Today was that day, at 31 weeks the babies had grown so much that it was safer for them to be born than to risk the lack of fluid.  Mom and Dad were ready to deliver their babies and the rest of us were waiting in anticipation outside the delivery area.  When they were born baby boy was doing quite well… but more discouraging news for baby girl.  Her lungs weren’t developed enough and the doctors gave a grim outlook.  Their prediction was correct.  We were in the room as we watched Mom and Dad cuddle her, hold her and tell her goodbye.  Three hours after her birth little Addison was gone.

So how did I see God at work?  I guess one would think that God at work would mean a miraculous recovery for this little baby and we would be able to tell the world about how we saw a critical little baby become perfectly healthy… I had hoped that for my friends.  I didn’t want them to experience something that most never have to experience… .I hoped that God would work that way but that was not his plan… but as I left the hospital I began thinking about what, according to those giving medical advice, should have happened long before this date.  Little baby girl was not supposed to have lived this long but if she had died in utero then her brother would have likely died too.  Both would have had to have been born at the same time and little baby boy wouldn’t have had the developed lungs to get him through too. …

The more I thought about it the more I thought about the miracle that I saw today… a little, tiny baby girl saved the life of her brother…. she fought when others thought she couldn’t… she grew when others thought it was impossible… she arrived and gave her parents the joy of seeing her move her little hands and feet  and the joy of holding her in their arms… what a hero she lived to be and what a legacy she left behind… her brother.

My friends are not alone… they trust in a great big God who has a plan that we can’t always understand… they have friends and family who have gathered around them as they grieve for one child and rejoice in the health of the other… they also have experienced something that others have also experienced…. If you or one you know is going through a similar situation please know that there is a God who wants to comfort you through and  that there are others out there that have gone through what you are now… support can be found at:

http://www.climb-support.org/index.html
http://www.nationalshare.org/
http://www.missfoundation.org/

 
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Posted by on April 16, 2009 in Faith, Life Stories

 

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American Idol …. Stay Away From Me..,,,Well, You Don’t Really Have To….

09 Apr

Don’t you hate it when you tell yourself, “I will never…. ”  and then you do it? Like for instance-

“I will never gain that weight back”- 20 pounds later while sipping on a milkshake you wonder why your pants feel tight

or …

townandcountry“I will never buy a red car much less a minivan”- “Ma’am this van has everything you want and at this price it won’t last long…”  SOLD!

or….

“I will never keep the puppy if I constantly have to tell you girls to take care of him”- He is four years old.. you know where I’m going here

or….

“I will never be like  ‘cough,cough’ and be hooked on some reality show”- I get sucked into the American Idol tunnel two nights a week and can hardly wait for the next week’s show…

In my defense I like American Idol for several reasons-

  • Our whole family can watch it and worry very little about being surprised with foul mouths or sex talk
  • You can actually see some great singers as well as unbelievably eager but not so great singers
  • You can pick a favorite and watch how far they go(I actually picked one winner from his very first audition and I think I have again this year)
  • My favorite reason- the stories behind the people

I love watching the stories of the people who are participating.  Sometimes it is of hardships they have overcome or sometimes it is a little something about their life that helps them stand out. Like a few years ago there was a contestant whose father was in prison and she was raised by a loving grandfather, or like this year a contestant is young but is a widower… or even another one this year, Scott, who actually went home tonight, is the first contestant to ever be on the show that has been visually impaired.  As he left tonight he was praised for his encouragement for others.  Scott’s story, shown on the big screen week after week, showed that Scott isn’t that much different from anybody else…. He lived the life that was given and was grateful for the good and worked around the inconvenient. scott_macintyre_210x202

I think that is the great thing about faith… it has a way of turning the bad into the inconvenient.  Inconvenient is something that kind of messes up things or is that road that you really didn’t want to have to travel but it still gets you where you need to go.  Without faith, it is hard to see beyond the bad. It is in those bad times though that we are able to decipher if our faith is real… it is easy to have faith in the good times… that is the genie in the lamp kind of faith.. or then again, maybe that is not faith… our faith shows up in the dark times….faith is believing what you can’t see… yep, dark times… it is the hope in the midst of the faith that turns that bad into inconvenient.

We all have a story.  We all have traveled the road of inconvenience or darkness… some maybe even are traveling it now.  As we say goodbye to Scott this week on American Idol we can hold on to the “never” that God has promised us….

Deuteronomy 31:6

6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

God’s “nevers” are true…. Have faith and be blessed

 
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Posted by on April 9, 2009 in Devotions, Faith, Life Stories

 

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Jelly Beans… possibly the greatest

08 Apr

jelly-beansMy daughter received a really sweet gift from her teacher and a classmate before their Spring Break… the whole class did.  It was a little basket and bag of Easter goodies.  Just after my daughter showed it to me, she devoured everything…. chocolate first (just like her Mom), then she went for the other sweet things like Skittles, Starburst and all of those other fat-free candy. (Believe me, I know the way the whole sweets justification thing works… saying fat-free, regardless of the sugar content has some redeeming sounding value) .

My precious little sticky-handed seven-year-old had finished all she could handle for the moment and brought me a little sweet gift…She handed it to me with a toothless grin and said, “Here Mom, you can have these,” and off she ran to play with a friend.  There in the bottom of the goodie bag was a rainbow of jelly beans… I can’t tell you how disappointed I was…. Jelly Beans are definitely not my favorite and in fact, I’m pretty sure that…with the exception of Jelly Bellies…. they probably have some great influence on our country’s economic situation today…. way too many jelly beans made and with all of the packaging and food color and sugar… they just seem to overproduce those things and they have to lose money on them.  They all seem to end up in some clearance shopping cart until they are marked down to 10 cents a bag… then either some impulsive bargain shopper scoops them up or the one of the few jelly bean enthusiasts out there grabs them to create jelly bean artwork. george_jelly_beans-3000x0500x750 I’m concerned that there may be a jelly bean bailout…   Check out Wal-mart the day after Easter,  see how many of those Reese’s eggs are left in comparison to the all of the jelly bean bags and you’ll see my concern.

I really do wonder why jelly beans have become such an Easter staple?  Maybe it is because they are inexpensive… or maybe it is because, though not impossible, they are harder to find throughout the year.. or maybe there is something about them that I just don’t see or get… I don’t know.

I know Jesus wasn’t talking about jelly beans when he said the least among you (which I think jelly beans totally are)will be the greatest.  I kind of always had in mind that being the “least among you” meant being humble and not being arrogant…. I still think it does…however, something struck me this morning as I was reading that passage.  Jesus had a child stand beside him and tells those who were arguing around him about their place by His side, “Whoever welcomes this little one, welcomes me, whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me”.  Wow! Being the least in order to be the greatest is about welcoming the child or childlike, a.k.a the least…. possibly the least of society… maybe the least according to your own personal prejudices or attitudes.. could be the least in maturity whether emotional, spiritual, social or physical… possibly the least could literally be a child (in that case I am plugging getting involved with your Children’s ministry)… I think Jesus was trying to show us that welcoming is what makes our faith so great… welcoming is more than just a greeting… it is an act of warmth, of hospitality, of gratefulness of the arrival…

Okay, I’ll welcome my jelly beans but only because they were given as a gift from someone I love…

Who has God given to you to welcome?  You might be surprised.  Maybe we should welcome because they are a gift from the Giver that we love.

Luke 9:46-48

46An argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest. 47Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and had him stand beside him. 48Then he said to them, “Whoever welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. For he who is least among you all—he is the greatest.”

 
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Posted by on April 8, 2009 in Devotions, Faith, Fun

 

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Another Great Holiday!! Might be the best so far

07 Apr

Though not always the same time every year, Easter is coming and we can all get excited about that ….I LOVE Easter!  (if you are not excited about that then feel free to ask me why I am)… April Fool’s Day has come and gone and what do you know?… my shoes really were untied…

But sandwiched in between these fine days is another overlooked holiday…. April 7th is No Housework Day!   And a Nobel Peace Prize was given to Al Gore???  What about the person who created this holiday??  Some priorities are so shifted…. Regardless, it is well worthy of mentioning… so if you are coming home to clothes on the floor, dirty dishes, etc, etc….. just overlook it.  If your personality doesn’t allow you to sit on the couch or go take a walk or play with kids while a mess is in the room then No Housework Day is a day to give someone else the duty.

Now those who know me might say, “Nancy, but doesn’t Chris do most of the housework at your house?”  And I would answer, “Yes” … but that’s not the point.  The point is that I can now I can have one day that I don’t feel guilty about it!

Enjoy your No Housework Day!

Oh, and by the way……. I have a wonderful husband and I love him much… housework or not!!

 
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Posted by on April 7, 2009 in Fun, Life Stories

 

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Moses P. Diddy Hall… At Least You Still Have Your strength….

04 Apr

There is something in the spring sunshine that allows the hibernating winter eye to suddenly see three things:

  1. Dirt/Dust and general messiness
  2. Extra plumpness around the mid-section
  3. an exaggerated rate of growth in anything green in the yard

And the consequences of this new spring sight are:

  1. Spring Cleaning
  2. Bike riders and joggers everywhere
  3. the cranking up of lawn mowers and weed eaters

There is one more thing in our house that is noticeable …. our beloved but high maintanance dog, Moses P. Diddy Hall  a.k.a. Moe, has a shaggy do… You might be thinking a trip to the groomers is the consequence to Moe’s long locks but not at our img_0995house.  We are thrifty when it comes to giving Moe his spring makeover…. shears and scissors and he’s looking good.  Well, lets just say, he looks different….. and not how I intended.  You know how when you begin to cut something and you realize that when you cut one side and then it is so incredibly uneven with the other side you then try to even it up only to find out that the other side is now longer? Well, I do…. and so does Moe.  His nice little beard and strategically fashioned head hair kept getting shorter and shorter until he looks like … well, he looks like ugly Moe.  I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder because several have said he looks really nice… I can’t see beyond his resemblence to the dragon, Falcor, in “The Neverending Story”.  Regardless, Moe has opened the door for our spring changes… next spring job for me?  Get one of those tomato tree stands as seen on TV and get to work being thrifty with my garden.

There is no special secret to Moe’s haircut. It is something we do several times a year.  At least he is not ashamed like our old dog, Sam, who used to hide behind the couch for about a week after his haircut… Moe thinks he looks nice… he doesn’t need to know otherwise.

img_0001falcor

But  through all of this haircut event it just so happened that I was reading (Judges 13-16:31) and my memory  was refreshed of  the story of Samson.  I’m always amazed when I see stories that depict Samson as some great hero and so often that is how we teach his story to children. There was really nothing heroic about Samson’s healthy life… what I mean by that is during a time in his life when he was at his physical best he was also at his character worst…. he was spoiled, manipulative, greedy, loud mouthed, arrogant,  womanizing and violent… not qualities that make a great hero that you want your kids to emulate…It was through these character traits that Delilah came into the picture… her whining and manipulative ways placed him in a position to give away the secret of his strength… his hair… and then she cut it off ( much like the Moses P. Diddy look, I would assume)  It was after this humbling experience of losing his strength and being blinded that Samson had to depend on strength from God… he wasn’t the same guy he had been earlier… and it was his final act that was the heroic one… He prayed to God to give him the ability to use his strength to do what God had wanted him to do in the first place… now that is a a hero

So two things I learned from Samson

  1. I learned that sometimes we have to be humbled in order for God to truly be able to work through us… with all of the strength that God had given Samson,  Samson was too busy worrying about the ladies and getting revenge that he wasn’t paying attention to what God was calling him to do… but God accomplished it anyway and Samson missed out on the good things because his focus wasn’t on God
  2. I learned that no matter how lousy of a person we may have been at one point in our lives, God is a loving and forgiving God and can take that old person and create a new one… regardless of the circumstances.  Samson got rid of the Philistines… even though he was pretty much an arrogant jerk… God still listened to his prayers and gave him another chance …

So if God wants me to share his story or help someone and I am too focused on my life and my wants and desires… I might just be humbled and those who I am to help will still get my help only in a way that I hadn’t really expected or hoped to have to deal with…

So what is God preparing me for?  What is he asking me to depend on him for?  What am I risking because my focus is on something less than God?

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Now, as far as I know, Moe’s haircut means nothing other than the fact that he looks quite a bit less shaggy… but, I’m not tying him up between two load bearing walls in our house, if you know what I mean… better safe than sorry.

 
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Posted by on April 4, 2009 in Devotions, Faith

 

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Tim Hawkins-Delilah

04 Apr

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Posted by on April 4, 2009 in Fun, Videos

 

A Pharisee’s Cheer…….Go Big Law! Go Big Law!

30 Mar

When I was in sixth grade there was a realization that came to be in my life.  It was the fact that I was a Kentucky Wildcat. (For those reading outside of the Bluegrass State, I’m talking figuratively not literally) I’m not sure exactly how I came into that knowledge but it could have been the fact that I traveled with the Follett family numerous times to Kentucky football games and there was nothing like the pride of having a car horn that played the school theme song…… or it could have just been the fact that I thought some of the Wildcat basketball team guys were quite nice looking in their Converse shoes and striped tube socks… (Yes, I signed my name Nancy “Macy” on all of my notes to friends)   Regardless of how it came to be…..all I know is that sixth grade brought about my first true conversations of the University of Kentucky Wildcats and their rivals with all of mjay_shidlery friends at lunch that had never been before.  Sixth grade was also the year that I, maintaining my tomboy image,  decorated my bedroom in Wildcat Blue and White.. I was then envy of all of my Kyle Macy, Jay Shidler loving girl friends and the envy of all of my UK basketball player wannabe guy friends… I was, without a doubt, a blue-blooded, don’t talk bad about my Wildcats, type of follower.

As I grew older (and wiser) I maintained that passion and enjoyed watching a game with others cheering right along whether at a game or on television…. or even on the radio.  I just didn’t want to miss a game.  However, something happened years later that began creating a bit of confusion for me…. I was speaking with a family member who lived out of state and I mentioned that Rick Pitino had done something and they floored me with their response, “Now who is Rick Pitino?”  This was a well educated, former Kentucky resident and they had no idea who Rick Pitino was nor did they have a clue that he was the UK Basketball coach!  I was stunned… You mean there are people out there who don’t follow Kentucky Basketball? You mean there are people out there who think UK means United Kingdom? You mean there are people out there who don’t schedule their C-sections and wedding plans and vacations around the Final Four or the SEC tournament? It can’t be! But it was true… it didn’t dishearten me but it did open my eyes a bit.

ukA few years later I moved to Illinois, just a few minutes away from the city of St. Louis, Missouri.  I was completely disappointed that they rarely showed a University of Kentucky basketball game there and that there was far more talk of Cardinals baseball and Rams football than any college program…. I just couldn’t understand.   As years passed, I began to not be able to keep up with UK ball like I wanted.  I tried to catch as much as I could on the radio, internet and national broadcasts but eventually it kind of began to fall out of my interest as I started to see the fun of following the Rams or the Cardinals.  I was losing my blue.  (do you hear the moans?)

But now we are back in Kentucky and I’ll have to say that I was excited to be back in an area where there was such passion and enthusiasm about a nonprofessional sport.  However, for me, something is different now…. it is not that I’ve become necessarily less of a Wildcat because UK is still always my top team.. it is not that I’ve become a disinterested because I still love a good game… it is that my perspective has changed.  I was once totally consumed with being on the inside of the Big Blue Nation. I sent out Wildcat trash talk with the best of them and didn’t think for once that there might be others out there with passions focused in other areas..My thoughts were, you are either a Wildcat fan or you are wrong….My perspective has changed because I have now been on the outside looking in… It is still fun to cheer, it is still fun to have rivals, it is still fun to wear blue … but still my perspective is different….

Today in Kentucky there is talk of a new coach… the rumor mill (or possibly the fact mill) is telling of coach John Calipari’s interest in becoming the next UK Men’s Basketball coach.   Sports talk is everywhere… people are either super excited with the change or people are super upset with the change… regardless of their stance, it is everywhere.

(Disclaimer- I am not advocating that UK fans are like Pharisees…… this is not about “the fans”  but about one fan…. read on…)

I realized something today as I was reading about Jesus and the Pharisees…. I think my lack of ability to think outside Big Blue realm for years could have been comparable to the faith of the Pharisees…..the Pharisees were huge
“Big Law” fans.  Though the law was given as a way for salvation, it became flawed when the law began to become more important than loving God and those same people who were so focused on obeying the law were also breaking the law by their lack of love… enter Jesus… he came to fulfill the law and in doing so he ruffled a few feathers and made some people pretty angry in the process.  They were so focused on their Law Love that they couldn’t really love others… they were so focused on their Law Love that they couldn’t hear the truth though it was right in front of their eyes… Until they stepped outside and looked in they couldn’t see that there was authority in the truth that Christ spoke and that he was offering them fulfillment of their beloved law… he was the salvation they needed but they couldn’t get past the thought of “You either follow all of the law… even the ones we have made up…. or you are wrong”  (Are you seeing the comparison?)… I’m saying my UK fanatic ways were comparable to the fanatical ways of the Pharisee.

Jesus offered salvation to a man who was lowered by friends through a roof in order to be healed.  the Pharisees were focused on Jesus offering salvation that their thoughts consumed them and they totally seemed to overlook the amazing fact that this man who was paralyzed was now walking.  Truth in front of them and they couldn’t see it.

Now in comparing myself to the Pharisees… I would have totally been one of those folks who would have wanted to run a coach with a poor record out of town… I would not have considered it any less than being a loyal fan…But lowering myself to the level of meanness or hatred toward a coach who possibly had a bad year or two, an athletic director who has to make incredibly tough decisions, or a team of students (yes, pretty much kids) is not the true sportsmanship of a loyal fan… it would be my blindness of not looking at the picture from the outside and considering what the correctness or truth of a fan really is…. the Pharisees likely didn’t consider their anger or hatred toward Christ as any more than being a loyal follower of the law…. but it was when they became hateful and mean that they stepped away from their law and were blind to what was true….

Though I couldn’t have said it at the time, I’m glad now that I had the opportunity to step outside and look in…I appreciate the new perspective

That is what I’ll call a Pharisee moment… something that I am so focused on that I can’t see what the truth is. (and I’d probably even cheer it on… Go Big Law!)… and the sad thing, that realizing there was another way to look at life outside the Big Blue walls is not even of eternal value… it was just a total non-important Pharisee moment… nothing in comparison to choices I’ve made that are of spiritual worth… I’m sure I could name plenty moments like that one but would have greater depth and meaning such as….. going to church, hearing the words but not leaving with a changed heart…. or praying but only in motion not in heart… “loving” people at church but forgetting that “love” when I was out of that building or situation…..There are more… Thankfully, like Paul, God forgives a Pharisee… all we have to do is ask.

God, show me your truth.

Luke 5:17-26

17One day as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law, who had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem, were sitting there. And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal the sick. 18Some men came carrying a paralytic on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. 19When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.

20When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

21The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

22Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? 23Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 24But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins….” He said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 25Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. 26Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”

 
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Posted by on March 30, 2009 in Devotions, Faith, Life Stories

 

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