Happy Tuesday! 

Two more classes and the end of the semester will be complete. Chapel at Brite was a set of nine lessons and carols.  It was a lesson of scripture and song.  I was honored to read the passage from Luke of the foretelling of the birth of Jesus to Mary by the angel.  I love that story and I loved getting to read it in our last chapel for the semester.

Prayer: Holy One, I praise You today for Your power, glory and creation. Most of all, I praise You for sending Your Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the Cross for me. Help me to do what You have called me to do this day, and I trust You to do the rest. Amen.

“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.”

I Corinthians 3: 6

God is at work.  My friend Lisa is an avid gardener.  She loves to plant, has the patience to water and discipline to pull the weeds.  But more importantly, my dear friend Lisa knows that neither she nor anyone else can accomplish anything without God.  Even though the planting, watering and weeding is hard work for someone like me, it is easy for her.  What is hard is the mystery of the seeds sprouting under the earth and breaking through to the top of the soil and so on for the seed to become the mature plant God intended it to be. And this miracle happens so often that we take it for granted.

Paul planted the seeds of the word of God.  Apollos followed along behind and watered the Word.  It does not take any special skill to do what Paul and Apollos did.  They shared the Word and watered it by encouraging others to pay attention and act on this Holy document.  Then the miracle happened as it was planted in the hearts and allowed to grow under the surface until it sprouted forth in action. Peter said believers have “been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever” (1 Peter 1: 23).  Remember, God gives the increase, and we must stay focused on our work, trusting God to His. 

Take joy in the journey and get your hands dirty.  Wear comfortable shoes and get some sleep.  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 only moved by what I believe and I believe God. 

Happy Monday! 

Ok, count down to the end of the semester and year end events. 

I have completed the entire packet of supervised Ministry Evaluation and collected the evaluations from Pastor Chris and the Lay Training committee.  One on the check off list complete and ready to turn in. 

Remaining on the list…one paper for Pastoral Care, completed pastoral care skills assessment, complete the study guide for New Testament Test, study for the New Testament test and take the New Testament test.  Many prayers please!! 

Prayer alert!  We received word tonight that a former pastor and very dear friend of ours is being placed in hospice care tomorrow.  She has COPD, congestive heart failure and her kidneys are shutting down.  This woman is one who helped me hear a call to ministry and who wrote a letter of recommendation for me to enter seminary.  Since I am not sure as to the confidentiality of this matter I am asking for you to pray for her and her family at this time without identifying her by name.  Thank you. 

Prayer:  Lord, yesterday, I asked You to open my eyes to see people as You see them.  Today I would like to also share with others how You see Your children. There are so many who need to see themselves as children of God created in Your image and how much you love them. There are those who are in need of hearing what it means to be Your child. There are so many around me who are living aimless lives without hope and without Christ.  Help me see the opportunities to boldly proclaim the message of salvation and loving forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Amen. 

“Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest is truly plentiful, but the laborers are few.  Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.’”

Matthew 9: 37-38

According to my meditation tonight a recent survey found that “96% of the people born since 1970 do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.”  I don’t know about you, but that statistic is scary and sends a call to the Christian believers to take a position in the labor force of Christ and cultivate some new growth.

When we share our faith we need to remember a few things…1) The harvest belongs to God so it is God who receives the increase.  We are all called to this ministry, and we are the vessels used by God to “gossip the gospel.”  It is God who receives the increase in those who come to believe in Jesus and in His name.  2) It is by the power of the Holy Spirit working through us that raises us up to serve in this journey and endeavor of reaching the lost. 

Today’s passage calls us to pray for others to believe in Christ. When we pray for this God will honor this step of faith into the furthering of the kingdom here on earth and enable those who need to deliver a message of hope and love. 

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes and get some sleep.  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 only moved by what I believe and I believe God. 

Blessed Sunday to you all! 

It was a busy day at church.  Worship at 8:30, I led Children’s church during the 11:00 worship and then went back at 5:00 to help narrate the Hanging of the Greens service at Rush Creek.  The sanctuary looks beautiful.  My part in the service was being the “explainer.”  I read explanations of the different decoration’s places in the sanctuary throughout the service and their scriptural and traditional Christian meanings.  It was very cool!! After all that I came home and worked on my Final Fall Evaluation for this semester for Supervised Ministry.  WOW!

Prayer:  Lord, today may my eyes be so lifted up that I will see the world as You see it. Your eyes of compassion constantly seek to save the lost, and it is my heart’s desire to see with Your eyes. Deliver me from the mundane approach of this day, and grant me the honor of sharing my faith and Your Good News with people today. As You open my eyes to that opportunity; open their blinded eyes to see their need. I choose to live in that expectancy today. Amen.

“Lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest.”

John 4: 35b

One of the questions I have to answer before I am ordained is “Why should I be ordained?”  I need to be able to clearly articulate why Gaylene should be “set apart” into the service of God through the church.  I have not yet been able to find the words these committee folks want to hear.  I am looking to find some words that can get me started.

I want to see people as God sees them and share the ‘good news” of God through Jesus.  I believe God has called me to a ministry of reconciliation as an agent of hope to those who are hurting, in sorrow, despair and in need of the assurance of God’s faithfulness.  The mission of the gospel is to teach others about the saving grace of God.  Through this calling to serve God and the body of Christ I pray for the power and strength to humbly wear the priestly mantle and be bold for God. 

Thanks for listening.

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes and get some sleep.  Count your blessings, say your prayers and pray for others.  Pray for your pastors and those of us in training.  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 only moved by what I believe and I believe God. 

Happy Saturday! 

Easy day.  Low key. Did some test prep.  Put Thanksgiving leftovers in the freezer for future use and made popcorn for movie watching. 

Prayer alert:  Our friend David Russell who spent Thanksgiving in a hospital in Arizona battling an infection is being released today. At around 5:30 they were waiting on a wheelchair and then heading home.  Please pray travel mercy on these treasured friends and continued healing for David. 

Prayer:  Lord You order the steps of a righteous person (Ps. 37: 23) , so may every move I make today be in the direction that Your Holy Spirit would have me walk. As I seek Your guidance, let me do so with the full confidence that You can be trusted to provide a more abundant life today that I could ever muster up in my flesh. “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord” (Ps. 19: 14). Amen.

“And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord.”

Jeremiah 29: 13, 14a

A few Sundays ago I preached at Rush Creek.  I placed bowls of scented oil at the end of each aisle for the congregation to anoint themselves with the oil prior to communion as a reminder throughout the day of the sweetness of God’s presence, love and forgiveness.

God has given each of us passions in the furthering of the kingdom here on earth.  Bruce has a passion for prison ministry.  I have a passion for pastoral care.  No matter what the passion God has given you it all comes down to the same message: when we seek the Lord with all of our heart we get to know God better. When we do that, we look for the opportunities to share what God has done for us with those we encounter.  Our task is to carry the same burden God carries…to see lost souls and help them find their way home through experiencing the love of God, His tender mercies, unmerited grace and complete forgiveness. 

When you wake up in the morning, greet God and experience the closeness and sweet fragrance of the presence of the Divine. Treasure the close fellowship being offered and desire to know God more throughout the day. 

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes and get some sleep.  Count your blessings, say your prayers and tell someone how much God loves them and you.  Love you all very much, 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 only moved by what I believe and I believe God. 

Happy Friday! 

The only thing better than spending one day with family is spending two days with family.  Today we spent the day at Allen Eagle Stadium watching my HS Alma Mater, Sherman High School, in the second round of the state football playoffs. The bad news is …they lost.  The good news is we watched the game from the hospitality suite.  Totally cool.  

Prayer request:  Our dear friend David Russell has spent part of his Thanksgiving holiday in a hospital in Arizona.  He is battling an infection.  According to Carme, the doc is releasing him to go home tomorrow.  Please keep him in your prayers for healing and travel mercy on their way back to Texas. Thank you all so very much.

Prayer:  “This morning reminds me, Lord, of Your grace and mercy to allow me to experience a new day filled with incredible opportunities to love You and be loved by You. Thank You for extending to me salvation’s wonderful forgiveness of my sin and the blessings of knowing You.  The knowledge of that is too big for me to keep to myself. Plant someone in my life today who needs You, someone who will listen to the glorious way that You changed my life. Change them with Your power and grace. Amen.”

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.”

Matthew 28: 19, 20a

While I was working at the hospital this summer I was called to a patient’s room.  It was an elderly gentleman who had not been given very long to live.  He felt the need to share his last wishes with some and he chose me.  One of his wishes was, “That my wife will come to know Christ as her personal Savior.”  It was this man’s final desire that his wife become a disciple of Christ. Whether it was before his passing or after did not matter, but her relationship with Christ did. 

These were the last words of Jesus to His disciples before He ascended to heaven.  He did not speak of the end times, rapture of the church or about heaven.  Jesus wanted His disciples to testify to what they has seen and heard about the power of Jesus love, forgiveness and grace.

The authentic witness is one who lives their life looking for openings to proclaim their love for Christ and teach others all that they have learned by the command of Christ.  Are we authentic witnesses or silent witnesses who expect others to learn about Jesus by watching our lives?

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes and get some sleep. Count your blessings and say your prayers.  Sleep well my friends and  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 only moved by what I believe and I believe God. 

                                                                                                                  

Happy Thanksgiving !!

I ask for special prayers for our family this Thanksgiving. Even though there were twenty plus for Thanksgiving lunch there were precious family members who did not share our table with us this year for they were at the Great Thanksgiving with Jesus. 

Prayer:  God of the Great Thanksgiving, I begin with praise and adoration to You. Without You life would be hopeless and aimless, but since You came to me when I couldn't get to You, life has been filled with great peace and anticipation and purpose. My voice will forever praise You for loving me enough to provide for my salvation through Your Son. Grant to me this day the vision to see opportunities to share that love with others. Because of Your strength, I will be successful in proclaiming Your love today. Amen.

“Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name but do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.”

Hebrews 13: 15-16

What an awesome day!  Great family fellowship, fantastic food and the Frogs won!! WOW!! Let the shopping begin.

There is a story about a homeless man who walked into a church and heard the good news of how much God loved him and so he accepted God as his Lord and Savior.  Shortly after that, someone in the church really put this new believer’s faith to the test by asking if God loved him so much why didn't he provide him with new shoes and a better way to take care of himself.  The man replied with, “I guess He did tell someone, but they forgot.”

My meditation tonight calls this type of talk, “Gossiping the gospel.” We cannot just rely on someone observing worship, prayers and study to change their lives.  We must sacrifice our time, our love, and our resources if we are to make a difference in the lives of others. 

Tomorrow is known as Black Friday.  There will be malls and shopping centers choked with shoppers.  Think about opportunities to extend the love of God to others as a demonstration of the difference God has made in your life. Let us seek in this season of the year to be effective witnesses to others by offering glimpses into the kingdom of God through our time, gifts and kindness.

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes (especially tomorrow!) and get some sleep.  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 only moved by what I believe and I believe God. 

Blessed Sunday to you all. 

Prayer:  Loving Spirit, thank You that I have not one sin greater than Your grace. Let grace reign in and through me today. You are my Lord, and sin is not. I desire You to lead me today. Help me to be an agent of Your grace.  Thank You for Your amazing, infinite grace. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

“Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Romans 5: 20, 21

“Sin is as strong as death.” Sin is something at which we need to take a serious look. Sin is all around us.  Look at all of the injustice, suffering, freed, hate and hurt in the world all because of sin.  Sin is strong, but praise God, our faith in Jesus and His grace is stronger.  The passage today says, “but where sin abounded, grace abounded much more.” 

Have you ever thought about sin this way?  Remember that sin is what brought us to Christ by grace.  It is the presence of sin in our lives that will continue to lead us back to Christ. 

Everything we have and everything we are is by God’s grace. It is our task because of this precious grace in our lives that we extend that same grace to others.  God’s grace abounds in us and even though we are sinners God still loves us and saves us when we do not deserve the forgiveness and grace given to us.  We must forgive others and give to others even when they do not deserve it. 

Take joy in the journey.  Wear comfortable shoes and get some sleep.  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 only moved by what I believe and I believe God.