Exchanges

With thanks to one of our pastors,Deone,most of this blog came about after reading a letter that he wrote from our church. It's amazing how many people go to the stores the day after Christmas to exchange a present they recieved. We saw it ourselves when we went out this evening.Speaking of exchanging, what a great time of year to reflect on things that I need to exchange in the coming year. Bad qualities for good qualities.I would be in line at the Lord's exchange counter for many,many, many hours if I tried to exchange all the bad qualities I have. But with His help,I will try to exchange at least a couple, and be a better person, and follower of HIM in the coming year.

If we only knew...

My childhood friend Dave and I invented snowboarding.We really did. Dave had a great hill in his back yard,and we used to get it all nice and icy,take one of those saucers,and instead of going down the hill on our stomachs,we got a running start,jumped on it,and rode it down like a surfboard. We would spend hours out there,it didn't matter how cold it got. Now, snowboarding is an Olympic sport. Geesh! If we only knew,we would be rich today.I'd still be boring,but I'd be a rich boring man.I believe The Lord knew that I would have probably blown the money instead of investing it.I believe that's the reason I don't have a lot of money today,He knows I'd blow it. Thank you Lord(I think) for knowing me so well. Sure would have been fun blowing that money...

5 Letters

dis or en. What a difference. DIS couragement can sap the life out of you. It can do great harm.Satan was aked one day if he could have only one thing to afflict people with, what would it be?Discouragement. He said that all of his other tools would work much more easily on a discouraged soul,a ripple effect. EN couragement can make all the difference in the world in someone's life. To build someone up,lift them when they are down, pray for them when they are in need,stand by them when they're alone, encourage them to keep going,can literally change someone's life. Only The Lord knows how many lives have been turned around by an encourager. Lord, help me to be THAT for many. Ps. Thanks, sister's E and M for your encouragement this past weekend.

A Lesson Learned...finally

I've finally learned how to clean our cars off when it snows. I just sweep a little peephole off so I can see, then I pull the cars into the street.I sweep all the snow off into the street, and let the cars run it over, or the plows clean it up.All these years I have been cleaning the cars off in the driveway, and making more work for myself.Duh! It only took me 48 years, but I've figured it out.Sometimes it seems it takes that long to learn a lesson The Lord is trying to teach me.I'm thankful He is patient. Sometimes He brings the same things to me over and over again,and then poof!, the lightbulb goes off and I see what He is getting at.It can be the same way when reading Scripture. I my read the same passage 20 times, then the 21st time, I really SEE what God is saying to me.Thank you Lord,for lessons learned.May there be many more.

Adolph's

I remember watching my mother, and now my bride,prepare meat(steak,roast,etc.) They pounded it and pounded it with this wooden thing with all these bumps on it,and then out came the Adolph's Meat Tenderizer.Man,that stuff is good,it really makes the meat tender, "melts in your mouth" tender.It like that with me,somewhat. The world pounds me and pounds me and pounds me.It's hard not to get angry,bitter, cynical,or to despair at all the evil. I need the "tenderizer"of The Lord to soften my heart.I ask Him for it a lot,not often enough. I need to ask Him more:"Tenderize my heart, Lord, help me to see people as You see them, and love them as You do".Without that Adolph's tenderizer that piece of meat would be tough,hard to chew,not pleasant at all. Without HIS tenderizer,that's how I am. Thank you Lord, for Your tenderness with me. Help me to be that way with others.

Thanks Verizon!

I see where Verizon is going to eliminate pay phones.Understandable with the cell phone craze.That means no more phone booths, either.Where is the boring man fan club going to meet NOW? Thanks a lot Verizon.Speaking of them,they send me a letter every month wanting me to sign up for all their services, voice mail,caller id,high speed internet,etc. for one price.Every month it comes, every month I throw it out. Boy, they are persistant though. The Lord told us to be persistant in prayer.I don't think that means that we bring own selfish desires before Him,and keep asking Him for them.For me it means persistantly and passionately praying for others,interceeding for them.Sometimes I don't feel like it,but then I think that maybe no one else is praying for them that particular day,and that helps me to pray on.Only The Lord knows how many people are blessed by our faithfully praying for them. Maybe in heaven He will show us,maybe not,but that is not important. I will pray on!

What a bargain!

I got the book My Utmost For His Highest,at a garage sale. It cost me 50 cents.It is my favorite book,a daily devotional that I have used for going on 4 years now. There isn't enough space on this blogsite to describe how much God has blessed me and taught me through that book.Speaking of bargains... I have a better one. 2 Corinthians 5:21.To me, the most amazing verse in the Bible. "He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, that in Him we might become the rightousness of God".I give Jesus my sin,He gives me His righteousness.(Right standing before God) It cost Him EVERYTHING,it costs me nothing. Match that Wal Mart,KMart, Target and all you other stores that claim you have great bargains. This bargain from Jesus is the only one that I need.Thank you,Lord, for offering it to me. Ps. A very happy birthday to my bride's friend Wassinger. She is a true servant,and you will not find a more giving person.I admire her a lot.

Gimmie, Gimmie, Gimmie

Another ABBA song.It's about what goes on in the middle of the night, the wee hours. A line in it says"There's not a soul out there, no one to hear my prayer" Not so with my Lord. Thank God His Throne Room is open all night long: 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Lord, help my prayer times with You not to be like the title of this song,where I'm always asking You to "gimmie, gimmie gimmie".You will,and You do,but how much better it is just to fellowship with You and listen,enjoy Your company,intercede for others. When I do that my own needs are of no concern, and yet it is there that they are met.