Happy Monday! Happy February!

I hope this day finds you well and warm. At this time each year my classroom studies Groundhog Day. There is some very interesting science to the legend. I think the people in Gobbler’s Knob, Pennsylvania, celebrate this old legend just to get hammered. They drag poor Phil out of his climate controlled apartment to see if the sun is shining or it the weather is cloudy. He is the sleepiest groundhog and would most likely just rather not!

Tonight I am writing in thanksgiving and great joy for Jeremy Brewer. He and his wife Addie are the directors of the Praise Team at our church. Jeremy was accepted to medical school this morning and the best part is that he will be doing his studies in Fort Worth! We have been praying for months as he has traveled all over the state doing interviews for different medical schools. We would have wished him well and Godspeed had he been called to study elsewhere, but we are so glad that he and Addie will remain here and do not have to move.

Jeremy leads a life of surrender and I feel fairly certain that this verse is written on his heart. Rick Warren says, “Don’t be afraid; nothing under His control can ever be out of control.”

James 4:7 “Give yourselves completely to God.”

Wow! Now there is a statement. Such a brief statement and yet it is the hardest passage for us to attain. God gave us the gift of free will. We can choose. I would love to tell you that I live a completely surrendered life, but NOT!! There are times I live more surrendered than others. When things are going well I give thanks, but I tend to rely more on me and a bit less on the One who loves me and knows what is best for me. When the road is rocky and filled with pot holes, valleys, and mountains to climb (lessons to learn), I seem to cling to the Father in faith and dependence on Him to see me safely to whatever destination set before me or teaching me the lessons I need to learn. It is sort of like the nation of Israel when they walked out of Egypt.

The Hebrew people were led from their captivity by the constant presence of God. God led them with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. God took care of them by night and day. God never left their sides or went out of their sight. They surrendered themselves over to God and trusted that He would bring them to the place He promised. Not the place for which they asked necessarily, but the place that He had prepared for them.

God does the same for us each day. When we surrender ourselves over to the One Who knows us best and loves us most then He can do His greatest work, because we are free from fear, free from regrets, free from our past and free from our sin. God can then lead us to where He wants us to go to do what His will desires for our lives. We will then have attained the “High calling of God in Christ Jesus.” The best part is that God will never ask us to make this journey alone. God goes with us each step of the way. Praise God for His love for each of us.

Take joy in the journey. Wear comfortable shoes, count your blessings and say your prayers. Love you all, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com

I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am moved only by what I believe and I believe God.