Monday, May 31, 1999
The difference between life and living are two different things.
Life is when you breathe and go through the motions and responsibilities of each day because that’s the thing to do.
Living is when you breathe and go through the motions and responsibilities of each day… and enjoy it!
So, what’s the difference? Having an intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Perhaps you say, “I’ve got a personal relationship with Jesus and I don’t feel the enjoyment of living!”
I have a personal relationship with a lot of people but I have an intimate relationship with my wife. Big difference!
What people need today is to be intimate with the Master!
Sunday, May 30, 1999
Even though I keep my eyes closed against the morning light as long as possible, thank you, Lord, that I can see. Many are blind.
Even though I huddle in my bed and put off rising, thank you Lord, that I have the strength to rise. There are many who are bedridden.
Even though the first hour of my day is hectic, when socks are lost, toast is burned and tempers are short, my children are so loud thank you, Lord, for my family. There are many who are lonely.
Even though our breakfast table never looks like the pictures in magazines and the menu is at times unbalanced, thank you, Lord, for the food we have. There are many who are hungry.
Even though the routine of my job is often monotonous, thank you, Lord, for the opportunity to work. There are many who have no job.
Even though I grumble and bemoan my fate from day to day and wish my circumstances were not so modest, thank you, Lord, for life.
-contributed by Ed Andrist
Saturday, May 29, 1999
Sweet Jesus
At the University of Chicago Divinity School each year they have what is called “Baptist Day”. It is a day when all the Baptists in the area are invited to the school because they want the Baptist dollars to keep coming in.
On this day each one is to bring a lunch to be eaten outdoors in a grassy picnic area. Every “Baptist Day” the school invites one of the great minds to lecture in the theological education center.
One year they invited Dr. Paul Tillich. Dr. Tillich spoke for two and one-half hours proving that the resurrection of Jesus was false. He quoted scholar after scholar and book after book. He concluded that since there was no such thing as the historical resurrection the religious tradition of the church was groundless, emotional mumbo-jumbo, because it was based on a relationship with a risen Jesus, who, in fact, never rose from the dead in any literal sense. He then asked if there were any questions.
After about 30 seconds, an old, dark skinned preacher with a head of short-cropped, woolly white hair stood up in the back of the auditorium. “Docta Tillich, I got one question”, he said as all eyes turned toward him. He reached into his sack lunch and pulled out an apple and began eating it.
“Docta Tillich” … CRUNCH, MUNCH… “My question is a simple question”, …CRUNCH, MUNCH…”Now, I ain’t never read them books you read” …CRUNCH, MUNCH…”and I can’t recite the Scriptures in the original Greek like you did” …CRUNCH, MUNCH …”and I don’t know nothin’ about Niebuhr and Heidegger”…CRUNCH, MUNCH…He finished the apple. “But what I wanna know is this..This apple I just ate——was it bitter or sweet?”
Dr. Tillich paused for a moment and answered in exemplary scholarly fashion: “I cannot possibly answer that question, for I never tasted your apple.”
The white-haired preacher dropped the core of his apple into his crumpled paper bag, looked up at Dr. Tillich and said calmly, “Well, neither have you tasted my Jesus.”
The 1,000 plus in attendance could not contain themselves. The auditorium erupted with applause and cheers. Dr. Tillich thanked his audience and promptly left the platform.
“Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him. If you have, rejoice in the hope of the resurrection that your faith in Him brings.” Psalm 34:8
-contributed by Martin Wishnatsky
Friday, May 28, 1999
“If it wasn’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all!” How many times have you heard that? Well, today was one of those days.
My daughters car had a low front tire so I checked it for air. I noticed that it looked a little worn on the inside. She was going out of town about 135 miles but it looked good enough to make it. After she left for some errands I just felt that it was too big of a risk to drive on the tire. So I called her at her first stop and told her to meet me in the Twin Cities and we would put on a couple of new front tires.
When she arrived I looked at the tire. I was horrified at what I saw. The tire had worn through in a round spot on the face of the tire and the metal chords were showing through. She certainly would have blown the tire out had she went much further. So we put the two new front tires on. But it was okay because my daughter and I were able to spend some nice quality time together… and we went shopping.
When we went back to pick up the car a couple of hours later I decided to look at the back tires. I noticed that the inside of one of the rear tires was also worn and suspect. Although I certainly had not planned to replace two more tires, we did. But it was okay because I spent more quality time with my daughter and we had dinner together.
Then she left for her destination and I headed home. As I was driving down the freeway about 40 miles from home I heard a ping nose and my car started to steer funny. I thought I had blown a tire but then I noticed that the alternator warning light was on. I pulled off at the exit and I noticed the heat gauge rising. When I stopped I opened the hood to see the main belt off of the engine and antifreeze squirting around. The water pump had gone out.
So I called my daughter’s home, which was only about five minutes away, and my son-in law came down. We had a nice quality visit.
I had already called my wife and she drove down to pick me up. On the way home… we had a nice quality visit.
It’s amazing! With all of the things that went wrong today… I had a great day! Why? Because I did a lot of things that I wouldn’t have done otherwise that were a real blessing to me.
Remember, it’s much easier to maintain or repair broken cars than it is broken relationships. Spend some quality time with the people you love this weekend!
Thursday, May 27, 1999
We love champions! When a champion runner crosses the finish line, a basketball player makes a great shot or a quarterback completes a long pass the crowd cheers. When a team wins the NBA Finals, Stanley Cup, Super Bowl or World Series thousands of people line the streets of their city to give them a ‘ticker tape’ parade. We love champions!
But today I salute an unsung hero. She will never get a heroes welcome in her community but her victories are of eternal magnitude. She is virtually unrecognized except by those whose lives have been changed by her kind and insightful words. When she gets to heaven I am sure there will be a ‘true’ heroes welcome, a cheering crowd the likes that has never been seen or heard on earth. She is a hero of the faith.
Today I salute the volunteers of our crisis pregnancy centers around the world who quietly save the lives of countless babies and bring the peace of God to the troubled hearts of young mothers.
It sure is interesting what a high value we place on someone who can ‘catch a ball’ and how little attention is given to someone who can ‘catch a life!’
Wednesday, May 26, 1999
The children of Israel and Pastor Moses followed a “cloud by day” and a “pillar of fire by night” that God had provided to lead them in the wilderness. The church today also exists in a wilderness… a moral, spiritual and economic wilderness. People want to provide what they want rather than allowing and waiting for God to provide what He wants. People are following the “dollar by day” and the “TV by night.” And, of course, the church is people.
Tuesday, May 25, 1999
10 Steps to Peace with yourself, Others and God.
You are not to blame for the problems of their parents.
When you make mistakes, seek God’s forgiveness and anyone whom you may have hurt and go forward. DO NOT SLEEP IN THE BED OF MISTAKES.
God doesn’t expect you to be perfect.
God made you in His image. In His eyes, you are beautiful beyond description.
God forgives you.
God loves you.
Circumstances can be difficult but life is really a thing of beauty and should be enjoyed. To God, life is sacred.
When you don’t know who to talk to, talk to God. The more you talk to Him the more you will trust Him and His Word.
Don’t hang around with those people who do the things you know you shouldn’t be doing or that you know God would not approve.
Always be a friend. There may be a time when you don’t have a friend but there is never a time that you can’t be a friend.
Monday, May 24, 1999
Paul Harvey read this on his radio show.
For the life of me, I can’t understand what could have gone wrong in Littleton, Colo. If only the parents had kept their children away from the guns, we wouldn’t have had such a tragedy. Yeah, it must have been the guns.
It couldn’t have been because of half our children being raised in broken homes.
It couldn’t have been because our children get to spend an average of 30 seconds in meaningful conversation with their parents each day. After all, we give our children quality time.
It couldn’t have been because we treat our children as pets and our pets as children.
It couldn’t have been because we place our children in day care centers where they learn their socialization skills among their peers under the law of the jungle while employees who have no vested interest in the children look on and make sure that no blood is spilled.
It couldn’t have been because we allow our children to watch, on average, seven hours of television a day filled with the glorification of sex and violence that isn’t fit for adult consumption.
It couldn’t have been because we allow our children to enter into virtual worlds in which, to win the game, one must kill as many opponents as possible in the most sadistic way possible.
It couldn’t have been because we have sterilized and contracepted our families down to sizes so small that the children we do have are so spoiled with material things that they come to equate the receiving of the material with love.
It couldn’t have been because our children, who historically have been seen as a blessing from God, are now being viewed as either a mistake created when contraception fails or inconveniences that parents try to raise in their spare time.
It couldn’t have been because our nation is the world leader in developing a culture of death in which 20 million to 30 million babies have been killed by abortion.
It couldn’t have been because we give two-year prison sentences to teen-agers who kill their newborns.
It couldn’t have been because our school systems teach the children that they are nothing but glorified apes who have evolutionized out of some primordial soup of mud by teaching evolution as fact and by handing out condoms as if they were candy.
It couldn’t have been because we teach our children that there are no laws of morality that transcend us, that everything is relative and that actions don’t have consequences. What the heck, the president gets away with it.
Nah, it must have been the guns.
-contributed by Sue Milstead
Sunday, May 23, 1999
THE FINAL ANALYSIS
People are often unreasonable,
Illogical, and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind,
People may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful,
You will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank,
People may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building,
Someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness,
They may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today,
People will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have,
And it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis,
It is between you and God;
It never was between you and them anyway.
(Author Unknown)
–contributed by Ed Andrist
Saturday, May 22, 1999
THE GUEST
A few months before I was born, my dad met a stranger who was new to our small Tennessee town. From the beginning, Dad as fascinated with this enchanting newcomer, and soon invited him to live with our family. The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome me into the world a few months later. As I grew up I never questioned his place in our family.
Mom taught me to love the Word of God. Dad taught me to obey it. But the stranger was our storyteller. He could weave the most fascinating tales. Adventures, mysteries and comedies were daily conversations. He could hold our whole family spellbound for hours each evening. He was like a friend to the whole family. He took Dad, Bill and me to our first major league baseball game. He was always encouraging us to see the movies and he even made arrangements to introduce us to several movie stars.
The stranger was an incessant talker. Dad didn’t seem to mind, but sometimes Mom would quietly get up-while the rest of us were enthralled with one of his stories of faraway places-and go to her room read her Bible and pray. I wonder now if she ever prayed that the stranger would leave. You see, my dad ruled our household with certain moral convictions. But this stranger never felt an obligation to honor them. Profanity, for example, was not allowed in our house-not from us, from Our friends, or adults. Our longtime visitor, however, used occasional four-letter words that burned my ears and made Dad squirm. To my knowledge the stranger was never confronted.
My dad was a teetotaler who didn’t permit alcohol in his home-not even for cooking. But the stranger felt he needed exposure and enlightened us to other ways of life. He offered us beer and other alcoholic beverages often. He made cigarettes look tasty, cigars manly, and pipes distinguished.
He talked freely (too much too freely) about sex. His comments were sometimes blatant, sometimes suggestive, and generally embarrassing. I know now that my early concepts of the man/woman relationship were influenced by the stranger. As I look back, I believe it was the grace of God that the stranger did not influence us more. Time after time he opposed the values of my parents. Yet he was seldom rebuked and never asked to leave.
More than thirty years have passed since the stranger moved in with the young family on Morningside Drive. But if I were to walk into my parents’ den today, you would still see him sitting over in a corner, waiting for someone to listen to him talk and watch him draw his pictures. His name? We always called him TV.
-contributed by Keith Jeske
Friday, May 21, 1999
Yesterday I accompanied my wife and daughter to a large shoe store. My wife was looking for a pair of walking shoes. So I looked around a little to see what kind of bargains I could find.
I happened unto a rack of Dr. Martin shoes that were on sale. Because of the price and style, I had never given any serious thought to purchasing a pair of Doc Martins. In fact, the style is so far removed from my normal shoe buying habit that I never considered such a purchase. But my sciatic nerve has been flaring up again and the pain is excruciating. So the big, thick goofy looking soles on Doc Martins shoes, along with the sale price, suddenly looked appealing to me.
I searched for a clerk and asked him if they had a size 10 Wide or a 10 ½ Medium. So the clerk went into the back and returned shortly to announce, “We don’t have your fit!” So I picked out another style and asked him to check it out. He promptly returned and said, “We don’t have your fit in that one either!” So I asked him to check if there had my size in any other store in the Twin Cities. He said that he would check the computer. He returned a few minutes later to announce, “We have one pair your size someplace in America but the computer doesn’t tell us which store. By the time we track it down it will more than likely be gone!” Needless to say, I didn’t purchase a pair of Doc Martins.
So it is with people who normally do not attend church. They try to go to church or go back to church after years of spiritual drought looking for comfort and stability. After mustering enough courage to attend church, guess what? After a time or two of attendance…no fit! Of course, there may be a church someplace in America where they could find a fit but it might be gone by the time they track it down!
It is imperative today that the church redevelops itself to assimilate people who are looking for a church home. We must learn how to open ourselves up to the ‘seeker’ and purposely provide them a fit. Not to lower the standards of the church but to meet people at their level of need.
How many people have visited your church in the past year who have disappointedly left saying, “NO FIT!”
Thursday, May 20, 1999
Fishing is an interesting sport. You take a string with a hook tied to the end of it with a worm or some other kind of bait stuck to it. The string is wrapped around this Yo Yo looking thing that is attached to a pole and then you throw it out onto the water as far as you can. These contraptions are quite sophisticated and expensive.
Then you sit and watch this “bobber” thing that is connected to the string. When the fish begin to “nibble” on the bait the bobber moves. That’s what’s called a “bite!” But bites do not count. Only “catches” count. So you wait until the bobber is pulled under the water by a fish that has taken a bite out of the bait and has been hooked by the “hook.”
I have observed from my deck that people will sit for hours and watch the bobber, waiting for the thrill of “catching the big one.” Some of them lay on the seat of the boat, others sit like a “thinking statue,” and others actually stand like “mighty warriors” determined to succeed.
But the one thing that always amazes is me is the stories about the “ones that got away.” These stories are terrific, almost like doing hand to hand combat with a shark. I think part of the thrill of fishing is telling about it after you get home!
Jesus called believers to be “fishers of men.” I wonder what would happen if some people put anywhere near as much time, effort and money into “fishing for men’ as “fishing for fish?” I can’t remember ever hearing anyone coming to church talking about the “convert who got away” or the “almost conversion.”
Wednesday, May 19, 1999
Recently we had many days of rain in row. It negatively effected people emotionally. I especially remember that on one day it seemed that every person I met was feeling down, overwhelmed with the “blahs.” I felt that way too.
So what do you do on days like that? Go do something nice for someone and you will make two people feel better!
Oh how He loves you and me.
Oh how He loves you and me.
He gave His life, what more could He give.
Oh how He loves you. Oh how He loves me.
Oh how he loves you and me.
Tuesday, May 18, 1999
With all the recent rain that we have had, the water level on the lake is extremely high. The lake is overflowing its banks. Most of the docks are covered with water. As I look across the bay from my deck, there is not a single weed in site! In fact, we went around the lake in a pontoon boat Sunday and I don’t recall seeing any weeds anywhere.
So it is with many peoples lives. They’re filled with so much activity that they are overflowing their boundaries. Why? To cover the weeds in their lives? There’s only one problem. God still sees the weeds no matter how full we make our schedules!
Take time for some spiritual spring maintenance.
Monday, May 17, 1999
A young mother was sitting in the waiting room of the clinic with her month old son in her arms. As I watched her for a moment I saw something I had not seen for awhile. I am sure that it is often unnoticed. But I have seen it many times over the years and I recognized it immediately.
This young mother held her baby in her arms bent her head gently toward the face of the baby and there it was! The look that only a mother can give. For just a moment there was an expression of love that came directly form her heart… the heart of a mother. I’ve seen that look on mothers’ faces many times but I just haven’t seen it for awhile. It was so refreshing to see the look of love that only a mother can give a baby.
It is so important for mothers to spend as much time as possible with their babies. What an honor it is to be a mother! So, the next time you see a mother holding her baby, watch for the look from the heart. How blessed a mother is to be able to be an “at home” mom… regardless of what so many of the ‘so called’ experts are saying. I don’t think they have ever seen “the look” from the heart!
Sunday, May 16, 1999
An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife enjoying his extended family. He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by. The contractor was
sorry to see his good worker go and ask if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and use inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.
When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect the house, the contractor handed the front-door key to the carpenter. “This is your house,” he said, “my gift to you.” What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.
So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized that, we would have done it differently.
Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely. It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dignity.
The plaque on the wall says, “Life is a do-it-yourself project.” Who could say it more clearly? Your life today is the result of your attitudes and choices in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today and tomorrow.
-contributed by Sandi Moser
Saturday, May 15, 1999
Teach oh lord!!
Teach oh Lord…
To pray effectively, and intelligently, according to your will—-
To listen to what you have to say to me through your word, and through circumstances that you use to teach your children.—- Also to listen to others who need to share a burden, or are in need of someone to lean on–
To be aware of your presence at all times, being confident that you are interested, and aware of all that I say ,or do–and being there when I need you to cast all my cares upon, or accept my praise and Thanksgiving that you bestow upon me day by day—
To always be mindful that it is only by grace that I am saved, and can rest upon that saving grace and keeping power to take me through the day–
To thank you each day that I through the finished work of Christ, and faith in that finished work, can claim to be a child of the living God–
To thank my Lord Jesus for his intercession for me at your throne each day, and for each day preparing a place for me, that where he is, I will be someday—
To thank you for the protecting hand of Your guardian angel to watch over me each step of the way—
To see, and use the opportunities to share my faith with others.
–contributed by Pastor Marv Nelson
*Marv Nelson is a retired pastor who ministered in small rural churches bi-vocationally for somewhat over 30 years. His ministry is rare these days. He is deserved of special recognition on honor for his faithfulness. He celebrated his 80th birthday last summer.
Friday, May 14, 1999
It takes a lot to want to be a good person.
It takes even more to be a good person.
It takes God remain a good person!
Thursday, May 13, 1999
The scriptures make no mention of Public schools or other non-parental organizations raising children. That ‘holy task’ is specifically ordained to be for parents with the aid of the church.
Wednesday, May 12, 1999
Rejection is not something that is easy to accept. From the time of childhood we have heard the word “no,” another child refuses to share or our offer of friendship to another is rudely dismissed. You are the last person picked when sides are chosen to play a game. It is a pain that we quickly acquire a dislike for.
In adulthood we find similar rejection and the pain feels the same or perhaps even worse. NOBODY LIKES REJECTION! Teens and adults are rejected by someone whom they ask for a date. A prospective employer hires someone else. A credit rejection turns excitement into devastation. Fellow employees treat you with special disdain. And it goes on and on.
Rejection is not unusual in our society. We have a standard for everything. If we don’t measure up… REJECTED!
Unfortunately, even our churches can develop patterns and habits of rejection. One of the biggest complaints that people have about churches today is the lack of fellowship. What people are really saying is that they feel rejected! They can’t find a crack in the ‘clicks’ that too often exist and dominant life in the church.
The ‘Good News’ is… God is not in the habit of rejection. It is His nature to forgive us and love us. In fact, God created us to have fellowship with Him. He desires to spend time with us. It’s amazing how little rejection people feel when they spend quality and quantity time with God!
Tuesday, May 11, 1999
As I watched the last night, I saw the results of a storm going through the Twin Cities. What appears to be straight winds had uprooted huge trees and violently threw them to the ground on their sides. It is a picture that is hard to comprehend.
But what is even harder to comprehend is that people have such a limited view of God’s power after seeing a picture like that. Read Psalm 104 today and be blessed!
Monday, May 10, 1999
If you need a jump start today… better read your owners manual before going any further. It will give you a power surge that will propel you to new heights. It will also ‘tinker with your heart,’ adjust your attitude and make you smile just as if you drank ‘smiley water!’ The Bible… don’t start your week without it!
Sunday, May 9, 1999
Dear Mother,
I brought you flowers this year. They are beautiful. I also wanted to write you a note… more for me than you.
Those Mother’s days when I didn’t bring you a gift or stop to see you, I was really just too preoccupied with “important things.” It hurts me to think how important the little things were to you and how little they meant to me.
Forgive me for the times that I hurt you. No doubt there were plenty. Mom, I really loved you with all of my heart! I just didn’t seem to have the time to always show it or take the time to say it.
I wish I had realized how much you enjoyed being treated special for that one day of the year. You treated me special for a lifetime!
And I laid the flowers on her grave and walked away in tears….
Saturday, May 8, 1999
“The Blind Bus Passenger”
The passengers on the bus watched sympathetically as the attractive young woman with the white cane made her way carefully up the steps. She paid the driver and, using her hands to feel the location of the seats, walked down the aisle and found the seat he’d told her was empty. Then she settled in,placed her briefcase on her lap and rested her cane against her leg. It had been a year since Susan, thirty-four, became blind.
Due to a medical misdiagnosis she had been rendered sightless, and she was suddenly thrown into a world of darkness, anger, frustration and self-pity. Once a fiercely independent woman, Susan now felt condemned by this terrible twist of fate to become a powerless, helpless burden on everyone around her. “How could this have happened to me?” she would plead, her heart knotted with anger. But no matter how much she cried or ranted or prayed, she knew the painful truth – her sight was never going to return. A cloud of depression hung over Susan’s once optimistic spirit. Just getting through each day was an exercise in frustration and exhaustion. And all she had to cling to was her husband Mark.
Mark was an Air Force officer and he loved Susan with all of his heart. When she first lost her sight, he watched her sink into despair and was determined to help his wife gain the strength and confidence she needed to become independent again. Mark’s military background had trained him well to deal with sensitive situations, and yet he know this was the most difficult battle he would ever face. Finally, Susan felt ready to return to her job, but how would she get there? She used to take the bus, but was now too frightened to get around the city by herself. Mark volunteered to drive her to work each day, even though they worked at opposite ends of the city.
At first, this comforted Susan and fulfilled Mark’s need to protect his sightless wife who was so insecure about performing the slightest task. Soon, however, Mark realized that this arrangement wasn’t working – it was hectic, and costly. Susan is going to have to start taking the bus again, he admitted to himself. But just the thought of mentioning it to her made him cringe. She was still so fragile, so angry. How would she react? Just as Mark predicted, Susan was horrified at the idea of taking the bus again. “I’m blind!” she responded bitterly. “How am I supposed to know where I’m going? I feel like you’re abandoning me.” Mark’s heart broke to hear these words, but he knew what had to be done. He promised Susan that each morning and evening he would ride the bus with her, for as long as it took, until she got the hang of it.
And that is exactly what happened. For two solid weeks, Mark, military uniform and all, accompanied Susan to and from work each day. He taught her how to rely on her other senses, specifically her hearing, to determine where she was and how to adapt to her new environment. He helped her befriend the bus drivers who could watch out for her, and save her a seat. He made her laugh, even on those not-so-good days when she would trip exiting the bus, or drop her briefcase.
Each morning they made the journey together, and Mark would take a cab back to his office. Although this routine was even more costly and exhausting than the previous one, Mark knew it was only a matter of time before Susan would be able to ride the bus on her own. He believed in her, in the Susan he used to know before she’d lost her sight, who wasn’t afraid of any challenge and who would never, ever quit.
Finally, Susan decided that she was ready to try the trip on her own. Monday morning arrived, and before she left, she threw her arms around Mark, her temporary bus riding companion, her husband, and her best friend. Her eyes filled with tears of gratitude for his loyalty, his patience, his love. She said good-bye, and for the first time, they went their separate ways. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday… Each day on her own went perfectly, and Susan had never felt better. She was doing it! She was going to work all by herself!
On Friday morning, Susan took the bus to work as usual. As she was paying for her fare to exit the bus, the driver said, “Boy, I sure envy you.” Susan wasn’t sure if the driver was speaking to her or not. After all, who on earth would ever envy a blind woman who had struggled just to find the courage to live for the past year?
Curious, she asked the driver, “Why do you say that you envy me?”
The driver responded, “It must feel so good to be taken care of and protected like you are.”
Susan had no idea what the driver was talking about, and asked again, “What do you mean?”
The driver answered, “You know, every morning for the past week, a fine looking gentleman in a military uniform has been standing across the corner watching you when you get off the bus. He makes sure you cross the street safely and he watches you until you enter your office building. Then he blows you a kiss, gives you a little salute and walks away. You are one lucky lady.”
Tears of happiness poured down Susan’s cheeks. For although she couldn’t physically see him, she had always felt Mark’s presence. She was lucky, so lucky, for he had given her a gift more powerful than sight, a gift she didn’t need to see to believe – the gift of love that can bring light where there had been darkness. God watches over us in just the same way. We may not know he is present. We may not be able to see His face, but He is there nonetheless! Be blessed in this thought: “God Loves You – even when you are not looking.”
-contributed by Garrett Novak
Friday, May 7, 1999
Mother’s Day is just around the corner and I am reminded of my mother. She passed away two years ago this past January. It would be great to spend a day with her but I can’t. But if I could, even though she knew I loved her, I’d tell her how much I love her. That’s what you should say to your mother this Sunday. She is God’s gift to you!
Thursday, May 6, 1999
The old hymns have lost their luster to many from this generation of church attendees. Much of the traditional church music has been replaced with worship choruses. I have always personally enjoyed worship choruses.
However, the message in some of them is somewhat shallow and repetitive. For some reason we sing songs today without much thought of the words. To truly be blessed by a song one needs to absorb the words. I have always considered the old hymns as the testimony of the saints.
The old hymns were written in an era when modern conveniences were few, hard physical work was common and medicine was primitive by today’s standards. There was plenty of illness, tragedy and premature deaths. Yet, the words of the old hymns seem to speak of God with peace, comfort and assurance.
Everyday with Jesus is sweeter than the day before.
Everyday with Jesus, I love Him more and more.
Jesus saves and keeps me, and He’s the one I’m waiting for.
Everyday with Jesus is sweeter than the day before.
Perhaps we have been too blessed to capture the goodness of God in our heart, attitude or spirit!
Wednesday, May 5, 1999
If we expect to have Godly children of the future we had better focus on having Godly young people of the present!
Tuesday, May 4, 1999
Yesterday I had a conversation with a friend who has had years of ministry experience. We were discussing the “pros and cons” of the latest methods being used by denominations and churches to call pastors. Parts of these methods are psychological or/and personality tests. Having been in a non-denominational ministry he obviously had not been involved in this approach. He asked, “Are those the same tests that Jesus took?” Our laughter could not be contained.
When we regained our composer we had some serious discussion about how difficult it was for churches to select a pastor. We empathize with the magnitude of a search committee’s task finding “God’s man of the hour.”
Over the past 20 years I have often heard people mention doing things like the New Testament church. Although there is much to learn from the roots of the church, some of their practice may not be practical today because of modern culture. However, if we selected pastors like they did back then do you know how would it be done?
Monday, May 3, 1999
A church without unity is a church without “Sonshine!”
Sunday, May 2, 1999
Be blessed today, for the King of glory has an age-old story and His love for us is written into it from start to finish. And what’s even better… the story is perfect because HE HOLDS THE PEN!
Saturday, May 1, 1999
Prayer will make a man cease from sin, or sin will entice a man to cease from prayer.
— John Bunyan
-contributed by Martin Wishnatski
