The Circle of Life

Last week was truly an experience in the circle of life. The week started on Saturday with the news of the death of a sister-in-law of a friend who was elderly and prepared to go meet her Maker. Then came the news of the death of the 20 year-old grandson of one of the couples in the breakfast club in a one car accident.

But Thursday was coming.

Then came the funerals. We did not attend but both were well attended. The 20-year-old had 220 cars and we found out through the grieving process that he, too, was well prepared to go home to his Heavenly Father. One funeral was on Monday and the other was on Wednesday. We grieved with our friends and neighbors as these two believers were ushered into the presence of their Father.

But Thursday was coming.

Thursday, about 7:00 am, we received a call from our son that Kathy was in labor and Max was on his way. My husband had a Compensation and Pension exam he HAD to go to so I showered, dressed quickly, and raced to the hospital. As we all waited, I prayed that my mother (the great-grandma), who had to attend a funeral that day herself, and my husband would arrive before Max did.

God honored my prayers as my mother arrived at noon and my husband at about 12:30 pm. It seemed like Max was waiting for everyone to be there because the doctor said he would be arrive at 12:30 pm and he didn't get here until 1:04 pm. We were all full of joy when my sister-in-law arrived in the waiting room to tell us that Kathy and Max were doing fine. I am sure the moment of Max's arrival was bittersweet for most of us with the death of my brother on New Year's Eve. That's okay, Sheila, I was thinking about him too. But I am sure my brother saw him from heaven because that's what the story of the rich man and Lazarus tells me.

What rejoicing erupted as we all took turns going back and holding this precious little gift from God. God even saw to that Max was born to Godly parent that will not only raise him in the knowledge and admonition of the Lord, but also in a Bible-believing, God-fearing church.

In six days we moved from great grief to great joy. But what a ride! We went from a life well lived, to the death of a grandchild gone too soon, to the birth of a son, nephew, and grandson. All this helped me to better understand the meaning of, "A time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance" (Ecclesiastes 3:3).

That is what this week has been. A trip through the valley of the shadow of death to the mountain top and green pastures.

So remember, no matter how bad things get, there are good things ahead. It may not be the birth of a grandchild, but you will feel exceptionally blessed by a Father who knows how much you can bear and wants to give you good things.

Seek-A-Word Puzzles

Since the first of this year I have become TOTALLY addicted to seek-a-word or word search puzzles. They are the perfect time filler when you are waiting on something. I have done them in hospitals, in the doctor's office (instead of watching the drug channel), while my husband finishes watching something I am not interested in, and outside in my "thinking place" (I'm ADD and in order to organize my thoughts I have to be doing something else so the "back" of my mind can work it out. Go figure.).

I discovered that the puzzles were hard at first. In fact, the ones with words I am not familiar with still are. But as I spent more time working them (at least 2 a day) they became easier and easier. I began to see patterns in how they were solved, developed strategies to make them easier, and letters/word parts that made the words easier to find. For example, I look at the puzzle and find any words I readily recognize and get them first. Then I look for the really long words (face it, there are only so many ways to put them into the puzzle). Then I start at the top of the word list and work down. However, I don't necessarily stick to the order in the list. Many times I will find a word farther down the list when I find the word I was looking for.

The trick is that the more words you find and mark, the more you will be able to see without as much effort. The key is that if you're stuck, look away and then look back and a word will just miraculously appear. Sometimes you will see only part of the word and that helps you look forward or backward to find the whole word. Why, you don't even need to know how to spell to work the puzzle. The words are right there so you can find them; no spelling needed (in fact, I used to use word search puzzles to teach spelling to my classes).

Then I started thinking (I bet you saw this coming) that these puzzles have a lot in common with studying the Bible. I have the privilege of teaching a Bible study every Thursday evening at New Salem United Methodist Church at 6:30 pm (just in case you're in the neighborhood and want to drop in sometime). So I spend a lot of time on both word search puzzles and Bible study which explains why I see such a complete connection between the two.

You don't have to know how to study the Bible in order to start. Many of us are intimidated by the fact that we don't know the "right" way to study. Well, truthfully, the main thing is to start. There are many good Fill-in-the-blank Bible studies that can not only teach you the Bible but also give you a start on how to study it.

At first, the studying will be hard. That's okay. I have a 32-hour Bible major from a Christian college and I still have trouble. I make use of the "find-a-verse" websites in order to write this blog and teach the Bible study. I was raised in the 70's when, in my denomination, memorization of Scripture and the Books of the Bible was not considered necessary. In fact, I didn't learn the Books of the Bible in order until I taught Bible drill at my church several years ago.

Once you have gotten over your fear of "messing up" you start looking for verses IN CONTEXT that apply to what you need to study. The reason I emphasize "in context" is that there are far too many people taking verses or parts of verses to prove what they are saying which is leading America to believe some pretty far fetched stuff. When I was in college the first time in the 70's, one of my professors told me something I will never forget, "You can prove ANYTHING by using isolated verses of scripture or parts of verses.

As you search. you will start to see patterns of thought and related verses throughout the whole Bible. You cannot truly understand the Bible unless you take it as a whole. Example, I am teaching the story of Isaac's and Rebeka's wedding (Do you know where it is located?). It is one of the most beautiful love stories in all the Bible...on two levels. There is the physical story which is perfect for the true romantic, and then there is the spiritual level that represents the marriage of the Church to her bridegroom, Jesus (okay Bible study members, you now have a preview of the lesson. Be prepared!).

The Old Testament will many times relate to the New Testament on a spiritual level. For example, how can you know what the grace found in Jesus saved you from unless you study Deuteronomy and Leviticus? How can you see that the Bible begins in a garden and ends in a garden, taking all creation back to where it started, unless you are looking for it? So don't become so focused on one passage that you miss the connections to other passages.

Deuteronomy 4:29 says, "But from there, you will search for the LORD your God, and you will find Him when you seek Him with all your heart and all your soul." Jeremiah 29:12-14a, "You will call to Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you..." See the connection to word search puzzles. You won't find God unless you go looking for Him.

I, personally, would hate to die and have God look at me and say, "Do I know you? I remember you talking to My Son once and doing a lot of asking, but I don't remember you ever allowing Me to talk." God's preferred way to speak to us today is through the 63 books of His Word. Truly knowing God is a conversation. Sometimes we don't like what He has to say to us, but other times, He tells us how much He loves us. You will never know Him unless you are willing to start studying what I once called "the Bible puzzle."

Well, Wednesday is my day to organize what I will teach on Thursday so I need to go and organize my Word search puzzle. But I can guarantee you that after I do that, I will be working the word search puzzle at the beginning of this blog!

Who Was That Man?

It was a beautiful fall day and truthfully, the last place I wanted to be was working late registration at school. But the other teachers had children and since I was the only one without children, I volunteered.

Dinner breaks were short during registration so I ran down to the local McDonald's to get something to eat. It was as I exited my car that the encounter with the angel began.

I started to go in to the restaurant and I was approached by what I called a "bum" at that stage of my life. He was dirty, smelly, skinny, and obviously wearing someone else's clothes because they hung on him like drapery. I was so focused on getting my dinner that I didn't even notice him coming towards me. If I had, I would have hurried a little more because I was afraid of bums and convinced that every dime you gave them went to liquor, especially the skinny ones.

He came up on my left and very politely asked, "Ma'am, could you spare $.85 so I can get myself a sandwich."

I was startled and instantly afraid of this seemingly harmless older gentleman. Then I felt this "punched-in-the-stomach" feeling which I convinced myself was nothing more than my own hunger.

I responded to the bum, "No, I don't have $.85," which was a half truth. I had a five dollar bill but no change.

He replied, "I promise ma'am, I am hungry and am going straight into the restaurant and get something to eat."

There was that feeling again. Was this guy reading my mind? Or had he just had someone say to him what I was thinking?

I told him "no" again and hurried into the restaurant to get my burger, fries, and diet coke. I was not paying attention when the cashier told me how much my meal cost. I was still shaking from my fear of that man.

I handed her my five dollar bill and she put the change in my hand. I looked at the price on the register and then at my hand to make sure I had the right change. My heart stopped and my eyes started to well up as I stood there looking at, you guessed it, $.85! I was so ashamed of myself for ignoring God's prompting I couldn't even look at the cashier as she handed me my food.

I mumbled a "thank you, have a nice day" and rushed out of the restaurant to find that "bum" which had suddenly become a hungry human being. I was terrified that he was gone so I scanned the parking lot like a sniper looking for his target. Then I spotted him on the sidewalk.

I didn't know his name so I shouted in my best teacher voice, "Hey, Buddy! Do you still need $.85?"

As he began to slowly walk back up the hill (Why didn't I notice his limp and how painfully he walked before?), I practically ran down the hill.

Once he was within earshot, he replied tentatively, "Yes, ma'am."

I joyfully handed him the change in my hand and told him, "Have a great day!"

I returned to my car and witnessed him go into the restaurant, order the cheapest hamburger they sold, and sit down by the large window directly in front of my car.

As I pulled out, I took one more look at the place where I had seen him sit down. He was gone!

The lesson that day was not lost on me. I have since developed a new insight into homeless people. There is an 85% chance that a homeless person you see on the street is a veteran. Truly hungry people WILL be willing to do odd jobs or let you take them to a fast food restaurant and buy them a meal. Some of the homeless are single mothers with children and are trying to keep their family together despite the pain in their heart as they see their children suffering with no home.

As for me, I have since taken sandwiches to the homeless and worked in soup kitchens and missions that serve food once a week to the homeless. Homeless people are just that, people that God created in His image just like He created those of us that are fortunate enough to have a home, car, and food in our stomachs every night. That was God's lesson for me that evening.

Was he one of God's angels? I guess I'll never know. I do know that he was an angel in the sense that God used him to teach me a lesson in compassion.

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. ( HEBREWS 13:2 *NIV )

Oh, For the Love of the Flamingo

I remember growing up seeing the odd flamingo in the front yard or garden and did not pay much attention to them. It was not until a youth pastor named Mike "Burr" Lovett held a fundraiser entitled "Flocking" that I discovered my love of God's bright pink masterpiece. When I first laid eyes on a front yard overflowing with a preponderance of plastic pieces of majestic, magical yard art, I knew it was love.

My life was forever changed that night. I flocked as many people as I could afford just so I could relive my first sight of that pick perfection. At thirty-six I knew I must own as many types of flamingos as was possible because flocking, like all wondrous things, would eventually pass on into oblivion.


Such is the beginning of my love affair with this amazing tropical bird. My first flamingos were, of course, two of the plastic beauties that had opened my eyes to this wondrous world in pink. Soon I owned a few more pieces of yard art like a flamingo planter, multiple flamingo wind chimes and a flamingo windmill. But not until I moved to the country could I truly indulge my flamingo fetish.

When we moved in, there was one bathroom attired in pink and black ceramic tile with a pink bathtub. I saw my chance to make my flamingo statement in the perfect arena. Yes, you guessed it, I have a flamingo bathroom complete with a flamingo bath rug, clock, shower curtain. wall art, shelf (upon which rests a flamingo cup and saucer, a Jim Shore flamingo and a spun glass flamingo), a collectible flamingo plate that adorns the wall above the shelf, and flamingo towels. It is truly the flamingo lover's paradise. I can think of no better place to sit and ponder the fate of the world while reading the flamingo picture book.

My love of flamingos has also spread to my office where I work with a flamingo pen and have a Gund and a Ty flamingo sitting in front of a palm tree whose lights dance to the tune of "Wipe o
Out." When things I am working on get too serious or my problems begin to weigh me down, I just push the button on the tree and dance to the perfect flamingo music.

I also possess flamingo wearing apparel. For day wear I own a flamingo bigshirt, flamingo capri set (which includes a sleeveless white shirt that has a sequined flamingo on it), a flamingo dress, flamingo bracelet, flamingo toe ring, flamingo brooch, and a flamingo tote. When I leave my house I can proclaim the virtues of the flamingo by simply getting dressed. I can even sleep in flamingo comfort in my flamingo nightgown.

My love of the flamingo has now spilled over into the kitchen with a 4-piece set of melamine flamingo dishes and a 4-piece set of flamingo corn holders.

And what Christmas would be complete unless I had, you guessed it again, a 4-foot white Christmas tree covered in flamingo ornaments.

I would say that my life is pretty much flamingo perfect but there are pieces that are missing. For example, flamingo shoes, flamingo earrings, flamingo necklace, flamingo bed sheets, more glass flamingo art...there is still so much to do!

The joy of the flamingo must be spread past Florida to the uttermost reaches of the globe. I assure you that I am doing my part in trying to put a flamingo in every house in America.

"a merry heart doeth good like a medicine." Proverbs 17:22

A Fruitless Search

There are times in this life that I don't understand everything I know. This morning was one of those times.

After our Boston puppy, Buddy, goes out with Phil he comes flying to the office to find me and give me my "Good morning!" puppy love. This morning when he came in I was not in the office so Buddy decides to go looking for the cat until I appear in my designated morning spot.

I heard Buddy go into the living room so I hurried to the door of the living room to try to stop the chase and fight that I just KNEW was coming. What I witnessed was my laugh for today (Buddy is usually good at least once a day for a good laugh). If you will look carefully at the picture on the left, you will see on the bottom shelf on the right-hand side of the picture a big black blob. That is where the cat was when Buddy entered the living room this morning.

Now notice the picture on the right. That is a picture of my living room from the cat's perspective. Buddy entered the living room from a door that is just to the left of where I took the picture, parallel to the shelf where the cat is lying. Now remember, Buddy is in search of the cat. He crosses right in front of the cat, looks behind the sofa comes around and checks behind the chair and then circles the coffee table and then leaves the living room after deciding the cat is definitely NOT in the living room. This whole trip was made while doing a Labrador retriever imitation with his nose to the ground trying to "smell out" the cat like Squirt does.

I know Boston Terriers are not known for their keen sense of smell, but one would think that he would have at keast smelled the cat when he walked right past him to get behind the couch! He did manage to find me in the hallway after his fruitless search. How could he miss. I was standing there laughing hysterically with tears running out of my eyes.

Imagine the look on the cat's face as this stupid dog is running around his territory searching diligently for him and the dog is clueless. You know the cat had to have some serious doubts about Buddy's I.Q. Come to think about it, he probably was having a pretty good cat laugh as he watched this imitation hunting dog trying to smell out his "prey".

As I watched that very excited puppy run around the living room while Shadow watched calmly from his front row seat, I thought about how we search the scriptures for encouragement or comfort or just information on how to handle a situation. In today's microwave society, we think we should be able to use what I call the "flop method" (where you just let the Bible flop open and you close your eyes and point to a verse) and be able to get our answer. That method will be empty most of the time and dangerous sometimes.

I heard the story of a person who had a problem and decided to use the flop method to get his answer because he had heard that God will give answers that way and he didn't have time to really search the Bible. So he let the Bible flop, closed his eyes and pointed to a scripture. When he opened his eyes the scripture read, "And Judas hanged himself from a tree." Well, he knew that wasn't the answer he was seeking so he decided to try again. He let the Bible flop, closed his eyes and pointed to yet another verse. What he read totally unnerved him. The verse said, "Go and do likewise."

II Timothy 2:14-15 says, "Remind them of these things and solemnly charge them in the presence of God not to wrangle about words, which is useless and leads to the ruin of the hearers. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth." Later in the third chapter we are told, "All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work."

The Scripture to tells us to be diligent (that means lots of work!) in our search of the Scriptures so that we may be adequately equipped to what? Work. Just like our mothers used to tell us, "Anything worth having is worth working for."

Want to hear from God regarding some situation in your life? Then it will be necessary to diligently search the Word for the answer. God never "microwaves" His answers and only rarely does the "flop method" prove fruitful.

Reading from God's Word daily helps to speed up the process of finding answers. What? You don't have time to do it every day? I don't either and I skip days because I think I already have too much to do that day, just like everyone else. But if I want the answers I seek from God, I have to make time. Sometimes I find answers and sometimes God shows me the darker side of me. Either way, the time I spend with God is always worth the work.

Just like Buddy was pretending to be Squirt and failing miserably, much to Shadow's amusement, I need to stop pretending to be a Bible scholar and work at learning everything God has for me in His Word.

Trust me, I never was a very good Labrador retriever anyway.

Workin' At the Dog Wash, Yeah!

Wednesday was dog wash day. I always start with the smallest one, Sassy, then Buddy, then the biggest one, Squirt (Does that look as strange to you as it does to me? hehe).

I never get a shower on dog wash day because the dogs will see to that I get a really good flea bath! So you NEVER have to worry about me giving fleas to you or your dog. ;)

But since I, in my "grubbies," wash to small dogs first, I spend a lot of time on my knees by the time they are washed, ears cleaned, and nails trimmed. Then comes Squirt.

With Squirt you start out standing (at least short little me does) and end up, once again, on your knees.

All this quality time on my knees Wednesday left significant bruises on my knees and sore lower back, calves, hamstrings, and...well, you get the idea. As I limped around yesterday bent over like a question mark complaining about my knees, I thought of a story I heard a preacher tell a long time ago.

It is said that the apostle James spent so much time on his knees in prayer that when he died, his knees looked like the knees of a camel because of the callouses that had formed from his habit of prayer. He took seriously Psalm 95:6: "Comes, let us worship and bow down, Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker."

However, I have found that Ps. 95:6 is the only place that tells us to kneel before the Lord. I am becoming convinced that the proper position for prayer is lying face down. There are actually 28 references in the Bible of patriarchs, prophets and the very Son of God lying prostrate before the Father God. Look it up. You can start in Genesis 17:3: "Then Abram fell to the ground and God spoke with him..." ;and go through Numbers 16:4: "When Moses heard [this], he fell facedown...;" then finally, Luke 17:15-16, "But one of them, seeing that he was healed, returned and, with a loud voice, gave glory to God. He fell facedown at His [Jesus'] feet, thanking Him. And he was a Samaritan." Even Jesus knew how to address His Father, "Then He [Jesus] went a little farther, fell to the ground, and began to pray that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him.' (Mark 14:35)

So why do we kneel instead of lying face first on the ground? In my case, I worry about two things: what other people will think having been socialized to kneeling like everyone else, and two, the army of people it would take to get me off the ground (AWKWARD!). Pride is the only thing standing between my kneeling and my lying prostrate like I am suppose to. And because I have researched it (MANY years ago when I went to Crichton College) and know what I should do, I will be held accountable for the knowledge I have.

So what do we do? We do what we know to do. At home in private, I do lie on the bed and pray. But in services, I do not wish to cause a weaker brother to stumble because they physically can't lie on the ground and get up. The important thing is that we pray continually. We can work out the position when we get to heaven and have our glorified bodies. I'm sure God understands.

Now if you will excuse me, I am going to doctor my aching knees. I only spent two hours on my knees and I am suffering at every step. I honestly don't know how the apostle James did it. Maybe it's like playing a guitar. At first your fingers hurt and bleed, but WITH PRACTICE you develop callouses and it becomes easier. Just like kneeling in prayer.

He Said WHAT???????

This morning started out like any other morning. I got up, got some caffeine and groggily opened my facebook home page, clicked "Most Recent" and I read this:

"The city's first Pagan Pride Day will be held Saturday. In conjunction with the autumn equinox, the day will see a public religious ceremony celebrating the First Harvest. There will also be workshops -- "Paganism 101," "Ritual tools and symbolism" and "Sacred chanting and drumming," to name a few -- held during the free event that will take place at City Park from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m .

This "friend" (probably picked him up through the game I play on facebook) lives in Kingston, Ontario and lists his religious views as Pagan/Druid. Well, I went to the Kingston, Ontario Department of Tourism's website and guess what? No festival listed...of course if I were Kingston I wouldn't want anyone to know about it. Then I realized something. The autumnal equinox this year is not until September 23, 2010 at 11:09 pm EDT.

Well I got on the comments section of this announcement and asked why it was not on the events calendar on the Kingston website and why a pagan didn't know the autumnal equinox was in September. So far, no response.

Now I can hear some of you asking, "You did unfriend him, didn't you?" No, I didn't. If I unfriend him, who will there be to stand up and offer him the love of Christ? I saw a very brave young Christian trying to witness to an evolutionist without knowing much about evolution. I jumped in to help with the evolution part (I used to be an evolutionist, then a theistic evolutionist and then I dumped all but the parts that are true like survival of the fittest and natural selection.) I was proud that this young man had the spiritual conviction to attempt to witness to him. Most of us would have just ignored the comment and gone on with our lives.

Because of his example, I have decided NOT to unfriend this person. In Matthew 28:19ff Jesus tells me, "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe every thing I have commanded you. And remember I am with you always to the end of the age." Most of the civilized world at that time was pagan. Jesus died at the hands of the pagan Romans.

Even Paul offered the love of Christ to the pagans. In Acts 17 Paul is in Areopagus preaching on the steps of the temple of the "Unknown God". He preached to the Athenians about how worthless their gods fashioned out of stone were and how Jesus is alive and ready to be Lord of their lives. Read that chapter and we see a great example of how to witness to pagans.

My chief worry is for the people that will watch these pagan rituals and think that is the "truth." But Paul tells me in Romans 1, "For God's wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth since what can be known about God is evident among them because God has shown it to them from the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse...They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served something created instead of the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen."

Have I picked a fight with he and his friends? Probably. But with your prayers and God's help, I MAY be able to plant some seeds of doubt about his pagan practices. Please pray for me that everything I say will be said in love and I will be able to communicate my love for him as a creation of God while telling about the salvation available through Christ. Thank you for your prayers.

A Celebration of Children

This weekend has been a busy one. I have spent the weekend celebrating the children in my life. First there was Jennifer's birthday party (she is the blonde third from the left) on Friday. We went to a place called Pump It Up that had all kinds of those thing that you blow up and play on. Even the teenagers and some of the adults in attendance had a ball on the "playground." I have never seen so much action and laughter. If I could bottle that the world be a more joyful place. You couldn't help laughing as they played and played and played (especially at the adults). Some of the adults found out that certain pieces of equipment created sore muscles. That was the most fun. Then the adults and children adjourned to the party room to eat ice cream and cake. It was a fun evening for all.

Sunday evening we celebrated the soon-to-be arrival of our newest grandchild, Max. The picture on the right is of his parents. It was the biggest baby shower I have ever attended. One of the guests told me there were about 90 people there! Each table talked and rejoiced in the blessing soon to come to my son and daughter (actually daughter-in-law so you don't think there is anything funny going on. But since I never had and girls, both of them are my daughters). We all talked and laughed and played games ("What's in the diaper" was kind of gross and I'm not just saying that because I didn't get any right) and just soaked up the joy of the new parents. The most encouraging part was knowing that the whole church (did I mention it was at their church?) was going to be there to see to it that Max is brought up knowing the Lord.

However, children are not all fun and games. There is a tremendous responsibility in raising children. There are enough pitfalls to deal with as an adult. But once you have been given the blessing of a child, you have this little soul that wants to be JUST LIKE YOU. Numbers 14:18 states, "The Lord is slow anger and rich in faithful love, forgiving wrongdoing and rebellion. But He will not leave [the guilty] unpunished, bringing the consequences of the fathers' wrongdoing on the children to the third and fourth generation."

When I became a parent I know I didn't give much thought to generational sins like swearing, drinking, violence and addictions of all types. Statistics show that these sins are passed from the mothers and fathers to the children. I know I have witnessed some of the things I hated the worst in myself manifest themselves in my boys.

Grandparents, we are not off the hook. Many times we have as much, if not more, influence on our grandchildren than their parents do. So we too must be on guard to the traps the devil sets for us.

I had a great time this weekend and did my best to remember my responsibility to the children in the room (Kathy is far enough along that Max can hear every word that is spoken). I absolutely love playing with my grandchildren and just being in their presence. Psalm 127: 4-5a tells us, "Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the sons born in one's youth. Happy is the man who has filled his quiver with them."

So I eagerly await the arrival of Max and remind Tommy and Kathy that a quiver full is twelve. But it doesn't stop there. Wayne and Christine, Max is going to need a playmate . ;) I love my children and grandchildren more than anything in my life but God. I have lots of love to give so you can't blame me for wanting a few more grandchildren to give my love to, right?

You might be old if...

I have been completing that sentence for two days now. You see, I got up at 2 am to go do what ladies of my age do in the middle of the night. I took care of all the necessary business and went to return to bed half asleep (by the time you're my age I'm not even sure you wake up). I kept pulling at my gown because it felt like it was tucked into my drawers or something like that. As I struggled with the gown down the hallway I finally turned around. I had somehow tucked the end of the toilet paper into my drawers (don't ask me. remember I was asleep). I had unrolled the ENTIRE roll of toilet paper on my trip down our ridiculously long hallway back to bed. I didn't feel like trying to roll it back up at 2am, so I just made a rather large pile of toilet paper next to the throne.

The next morning, when my husband came down the hallway to get ready for work, I saw him pause in front of my bathroom with a puzzled look on his face. Before he was able to get the question out, I related the whole story to him while he laughed like a hyena. That's what started me thinking about this blog.

So with apologies to Jeff Foxworthy and Bill Cosby, here is what I came up with.

You might be old if...

*you remember the phone only being good for talking with all the neighbors listening.
*you have never used your thumbs to type.
*your children and grandchildren text each other at the dinner table instead of talk.(I mean, really. They are sitting right next to each other!)
*you finally get it together, but can't remember where you put it.
*your doctor starts every conversation with, "as we get older and wiser." (my doctor's really says this)
*you find yourself keeping the pharmaceutical industry and medical community in business single-handedly.
*you see a child misbehaving in public and your first response is, "If I had done that as a kid...."
*you walk five miles a day because you keep forgetting what you got up for.
*all your favorite songs are played on the "oldies" channel.
*you realize a large portion of your favorite songs didn't have real words (aweem, awep, aweem, awep; do wa ditty, ditty dum, ditty do...)
*you believe the only good movies are on AMC and TMC.
*your hair is so gray/white that the red hair color comes out pink.
*winning at cards, dominoes, and board games is the high point of your day.
*you schedule your life around "Jeopardy" and "Wheel of Fortune."
*you tell someone when you got married and they respond, "Oh, I was born that year.." (really happened!)
*the subjects you were taught in high school are being taught to 5th graders (you're really NOT smarter than a 5th grader!)
*having a dark suntan meant you had spent hours baking in the sun.
*you see two people having dinner, each on the cell phone, and wonder why they bothered.
*your memory moves to your derriere because you can't remember what you wanted in the other room until you go back and sit down.
*you buy presents in advance, hide them, and then can't remember where they are.
*it takes a dozen trips to the grocery store to get everything you needed.

It's good to be able to poke fun at yourself. Proverbs 15:15b says, "But he who is of a merry heart has a continual feast." So don't take yourself too seriously and enjoy your feast!

But I Was Right...

I have learned a great lesson today. I have learned that someone can be totally wrong and still make money off their lie. It makes me very angry but there is nothing I can do about it.



Let me explain. On July 27, 2009, my husband was in a driveway off Highway 51 North. Suddenly a car traveling WAY too fast on hwy.51 jumped a ditch and t-boned him in the driveway. Yes, that's right, the driveway. My husband was hit so hard that he actually passed out for a second upon exiting the car. The other driver told the police that my husband had made a right-hand turn from the left-hand lane. The officer ticketed my husband for failure to yield the right of way IN A DRIVEWAY. Long story short, we got the ticket dismissed and our insurance refused to pay for his vehicle and his insurance did too.



Today, a sheriff's deputy appeared at my door to serve my husband with papers for a law suit filed by the guy that hit my husband. The deputy told me that my insurance company will settle with him to the tune of $10,000-15,000 to save them the attorney's fees. So he gets $10,000 minimum to reward him for doing wrong.


I want to scream from my roof that my husband did nothing wrong and this is sooooo not fair. God knows how I feel. Jesus told the crowd gathered on the Mount, "But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. For he causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." (Matthew 5:44-45) What God requires me to do is to pray for this guy even though he lied about us and is now going to cause our insurance to go up. As I pray for him, I will be able to love him through Christ's love for him.

However, my father always told me that there is always payday someday. In that same sermon Jesus tells the crowd,"And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into hell!" (Matthew 5:35) He knows he lied and he caused one of his friends to lie (the friend later repented and told the truth). I don't know if he is a believer or not, but I do know that come the White Throne of Judgment, he will have to answer for what he is doing now before a holy and just God. That at least provides a little comfort.

I would like you, my readers, to pray for me as I struggle to pray that God touch him and show him His love. It's going to be hard but this is God's command concerning this matter that we have now had to struggle with for a year. And while he may thumb his nose at God's commands, I REFUSE to allow this fallible MAN ruin my relationship with GOD.

The Hug

Nothing starts the day better than a hug. I remember when my boys were small and would come running, arms wide open, big smile, wanting me to pick them up and give them a hug. I remember the same event with my grandchildren. And now we are expecting another grandson late this month and when he learns to walk, I expect the same joy. Toddlers just seem to know how to hug.

You know, there is something kind of sad when they don't want to be hugged anymore. All children reach that age and all parents and grandparents feel a sense of loss when their child/grandchild go to the "A-frame" hug. You know the kind. The hug where you bend at the waist and the only hugging that goes on is from the shoulders up. It's not quite what we humans need but it is what we "settle for" because society says that older children and adults should not embrace each other.

That doesn't mean that mornings have to be lonely and unfulfilled. Every morning, after my husband takes my Boston terrier puppy out to "do his business," I hear the tap, tap, tap of paws across the linoleum in the kitchen and then the jubilant face and wagging tail of my puppy comes running into my office joyfully greeting me every morning. There is no comparison to the joy he and I feel as we greet each other (Sorry Cesar, I know I am nuturing excitement and I don't care!). In fact, I think the expectation is almost better than the actual event. Just knowing that I am unconditionally loved and WANTED is a very comforting feeling.

I know that some of you are not "the hugging type." Some of you have had a falling out with parents, friends, relatives, significant others or whoever gave you the best hugs. I have been there and I know how it feels. It leaves a hole that actually makes you ill whenever you see others hugging and smiling.

There are hugs that are always available. In Luke 15 Jesus tells us the story of a son that thought he was too old for hugs. In fact, he was so full of his own "maturity" that he told his dad to give him what he was owed as his inheritance and then, told his father and brother to get lost! He moved out and blew all his money, like so many young people today. Then he found himself broke, hungry, and with too much pride to go home and admit he blew it. But after a few weeks of pig slop (Ewwwww) his mental wheels start turning and he realizes that Dad's slaves eat better than this. That's it, I'll go home and offer to be a slave!

So he starts walking. "But while the son was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion. *HE RAN, THREW HIS ARMS AROUND HIS NECK AND KISSED HIM." (Luke 15:20)*emphasis mine*

I had read this story thousands of times and never noticed one little detail until it was pointed out to me. The only way the father would see his son "a long way off," would be if he was looking out for him from the roof the whole time he was gone. He wasn't just waiting on him, HE WAS LOOKING FOR HIM down that long road to the house day in and day out praying for the return of his son, and anticipating what the reunion would be like!

Then he sees him...his son. I can see the tears start to well up in the old man's eyes as he sees the son he loves from "a long way off." He can't get down to the road quick enough. He has his robe tucked in his belt so he can run faster and get to his son he has waited for so long. He grabs his son around the neck in a big old bear hug and kisses him over and over again to share the joy he feels at his return.

Wow! I cry every time I tell that story. I realize that no matter how much I screw up, God is going to come running and give me a big old bear hug to welcome me back once I know I am wrong. It just doesn't get any better than that!

Feel like you need a hug from somebody, anybody? Get out your Bible or borrow one from the library or a friend and read Luke 15: 11-23. I promise you once you finish reading this parable, you will feel your Heavenly Father's arms wrapped around you like a warm blanket saying, "I love you so much. I'm glad you're back."