Month: December 2012

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Freshen Up Friday

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Many times last summer when I would water my flower boxes, I would end up with a liberal amount of water on me, due to the overflow.  The water would sprinkle out of the bottom of the boxes, giving my shoes (or bare feet) a little shower. Sometimes, it would just splash up out of the watering can as I was doing my daily task of giving the plants a drink.  On those hot days, that was refreshing!
 
You know, that often happens to us when we go to be a blessing to someone else – the blessing splashes up and drenches us as well!  That’s what this verse in Proverbs is saying:

Proverbs 11:25 –
The liberal soul shall be made fat:
and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.


One of the best ways to lift your own drooping heart, is to go be a blessing to others.  Here’s a picture of some people that have stopped by recently to be a blessing to us, and greatly succeeded.  My prayer is that their service for the Lord watered themselves, too!

Here is part of the group that came from our church to read, sing and play for my mother-in-law:

 
 
 
These gentlemen are strangers to us, but they came with guitar and harmonica (and a bag of treats) to sing and brighten the day of the hospital residents:
 


There was also another stranger who brought and keyboard and played Christmas carols and sang while he played! 
 
Can I encourage you to find a way this weekend to go “water” someone who needs encouraging?  Your local hospital would be a great place to start, if you don’t know of someone who has a need.  Ask the staff if you can go from room to room, and just read Scripture – a psalm or the Christmas story from Luke 2.  If you’re musical, you could consider using that gift to be a blessing.  
 
When you refresh others, you will be refreshed and will forget all about your own troubles!
 
Be refreshed,


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A Song At Midnight

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The stripes that had been sliced into their backs stung.  The prison cell was cold and dark.  The shouts from the towns people still rang in their ears, but at midnight, Paul and Silas sang the most beautiful duet of praise, following their time of prayer.  The other prisoners heard it, so we know they weren’t just muttering under their breath.  This prayer time and singspiration came from hearts that were truly joyful. 

Paul and Silas’ genuine faith was heard and seen by their fellow prisoners, and also by the guard.  What they saw was men, who even in a time of testing and hardship, still clung onto the faith they had just preached in the streets of their city.  What people want to know from Christians is that our faith is true even when we’re tested.  Anyone can sing in the sunshine.  It’s warm.  It makes us feel good.  It energizes us.  But at midnight when it’s cold and lonely, is there still a song on our lips? 

I’ve seen from our current “prison cell” experience, i.e., the hospital and diagnosis of terminal cancer, that many people are watching and listening.  They are nurses, janitors, doctors, hospital staff and other patients.  Their response has been a little slow, I think because they’re watching as the days progress, but they are coming to us asking where we go to church.  Some have remarked what a breath of fresh air it is to see people respond to the word, “terminal” with hope in their eyes instead of anger or paralyzing fear.  This is not because we are super-Christians, this is God’s grace working in us.  It’s the evidence that He is enough – not just for the day you get saved, but every day of life, and even when facing the death of a loved one – or your own.  They are listening as we sing in the hospital room.  They are watching the care of our church family march in and out all through the day.  All of this is our “song at midnight.”

People are watching those that call themselves Christians.  The folks at our local grocery store are witnesses to our response to a long wait at the checkout.  Our family sees our attitude when we are disappointed about a change in plans.  Co-workers notice if we clock in late or are lazy on the job.  The children at church watch you, their Sunday school teacher, responding at the invitation and going to the altar so your heart will remain tender towards the Lord.

Will we faithfully trust and testify of our love for the Lord in every situation and have the testimony that Paul and Silas had ?  Their great witness brought a man and his whole family to the Lord!  I believe they would say it was worth it, don’t you?!

Who is watching you today?  Share with them the reason for the hope that lies within you as you sing a song at midnight!

With love,

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A Peek Inside the Parsonage

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A few
Christmas touches in my kitchen …
 
Pencil Tree decor

 
 
 
 

Not a creature was stirring…not even a mouse =)
 

Okay, so Liza isn’t a Christmas decoration, but she makes any room prettier, don’t you think?

I like a few decorations in the kitchen because we spend a lot of time in that room!  Do you put decorations all through your house?

From my parsonage windows,

   P.S.

Don’t forget to do something special today for 12/12/12! Make a memory!

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Why I Follow Christ

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Sitting in a hospital room watching a Christian suffer is not an easy thing, but it has not made me flinch regarding the love of my Savior or His sovereign plan for His child.  I know that suffering is a part of His plan for all of us, though some would shake their heads and say, “If that’s the kind of God you serve, then I’m not interested.”  Oh, how He makes sense of the suffering! 
 
I heard a broadcast yesterday where this letter was read.  Its truth resounded in my own heart, and I want to share it with you.  It’s a little longer than most things I post, but I trust you’ll take time to read it.  It will encourage your heart!
 
I have not seen clear statistical evidence that fewer Christians die of cancer than non-believers or that they are immune in greater degree from the diseases that afflict the human race.

Some of the kindest, most selfless persons I have known have had more than their share of bad health. The fact that they belong to Christ did not insulate them from disease.

Therefore, I will not follow Christ for promised healing.

I will not deny or dispute evidence of restoration of health. I will rejoice at every recovery from what seems to be hopeless, threatened death. I will not hesitate to pray for recovered health for my loved ones and acquaintances. I will set no limits on what God may do but I will not follow Christ for promised healing.

I see no sign that Christians escape disaster and accident more often than others. I’ve helped dear friends empty muddy water out of dresser drawers and new appliances after a disastrous flood. I remember as a child taking clothes to a widow with five children whose house had burned to the ground. A bullet makes no detour around the body of a believer.

Therefore, I will not follow Christ for any promised protection from disaster.

I will not scoff at amazing survivals nor deny that providence has and continues to work for the good of God’s own. I will continue to pray for protection from wicked men and tragedy, but I will not follow Christ for promised protection from accident or catastrophe.

I do not observe that Christians are especially favored with prosperity. Like James, we’ve all seen the rich oppressing the poor and justice is rarely perfect in this world. The psalmist has said that he “had not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread” and in the deepest needs of this life, that is certainly true but all of us have known people of integrity who have not prospered.

Therefore, I will not follow Christ for promised freedom from physical want or hope of affluence.

I’m not sure that Christians have stronger personalities or fewer neuroses than non-believers. I do know that there is no bitterness like religious bitterness and no arrogance more insufferable. I have watched Christians suffer emotional and mental disabilities and though it may seem heretical, I am not sure that I would really enjoy living in the same house with either the Apostle Peter or Paul.

God wills that the mind of Christ be formed in us and there is no doubt in my mind that the Christian’s attitudes and actions will be improved by his Christianity, but I will not follow Christ for any promise of personality enhancement or perfection.

Why then follow Christ? Why become a disciple of Jesus when life may become more complicated as He so often warned?

For one reason alone:

In Jesus we behold the face of God. He is the truth, the everlasting truth, God in the flesh. I know that in His life, death, and resurrection, I am reconciled to God, the giver of life.

I believe that nothing can separate us from the love of God. He has all power and goodness and I trust Him and His promises. To him, I offer my life, damaged or whole, brief or full of years. It matters not. He is the one certain thing in an uncertain world. He is to be worshiped, not so something will happen to me or to the world. Something already has happened to me and the world, but because He is God who, through Christ, has reconciled the world to Himself. He saves me. He is my justification. He is the center that holds. To worship the God of our salvation, to offer sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving; that alone is our vocation. We offer our lives to God, not so as to be healthy, wealthy, or wise, not even so to gain the strength to do great things for Him; we offer our lives to Him because He alone has claim upon us. God is not a means to an end.

John C. Hutchinson Jr.

Amen!  Are you following Him?  To follow Him is to have Life Eternal!!!

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What Are We Eating in the Parsonage?

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Notice the title change?  Um, yeah, it’s because I haven’t done a whole lot of cooking, for obvious reasons.  However, we’re not starving!  Sweet people have brought in some delicious meals for us to warm up when we get home from the hospital each day.

                                          

Not picking favorites, but I have to give an honest blue ribbon to this wonderful Potato Soup, brought to us by one of the incredible young moms.  Though she has three young girls, a full-time job, and many responsibilities each day, she somehow managed to get a meal together for us.  Wow, it’s hard to accept the graciousness of someone you know is so busy, but it was so helpful to us, and I won’t steal her blessing of serving.  I like potato soup, but I LOVED this recipe.  The hash browns are why I love it so much.  It’s just little pieces of potatoes, oh yeah, mixed in with the cream cheese  and chicken broth.  What’s not to love?!

Here’s her recipe that comes from Paula Deen:

1 (30 oz.) bag frozen hash-brown potatoes (She used the shredded kind)

2 (14 oz.) cans chicken broth

1 (10.75 oz.) can cream of chicken soup

1/2c chopped onion

1/3 tsp. ground black pepper

1 (8oz) package cream cheese (softened)

Garnish: minced green onion,shredded cheese and bacon bits
 
Directions:
 
I a slow cooker, combine potatoes, broth, soup, onion, and pepper.
Cover, and cook on low for 5 hours.
Stir in cream cheese, cook 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until combined.
 
As I mentioned earlier, I really have had to learn to accept the help that others have offered.  The sweetest and best help is when someone makes a suggestion of what they’d like to do.  The young woman who made the soup said, “Let me bring you a meal.”  Someone else said, “I’m going to the store, is there something I can bring you?”  That takes the load off of me, thinking that I’m adding an extra burden that the person really didn’t have time for.  It’s been a good lesson for me to remember for the days ahead in ministering to others.  What a blessing to have others do what is commanded in Galatians 6:2 – Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.  Thank you, to all of you who have helped carry our load.  You’ve done it with your prayers, your actions, cards, and calls.  We are carrying on easier because of it.
 
From my parsonage kitchen table,