Posts
Happy Labor Day to you all!
I stayed super busy getting caught up with errands and things round the house. It was a great day and I got nearly my entire list accomplished. Yea! Just a couple of quick updates: first, Carme came through her surgery very well and is recouping. Ken (my brother) came through his surgery very well also and the damage to his shoulder was not as extensive as earlier anticipated so his surgery was not as extensive and the recovery time has been cut in half. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Mark 6: 41—44 “When He had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, He…blessed, and broke the loaves…and they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men.”
You have probably heard this story about a million times. I never tire of hearing the story and the wonderful image it paints. I envision the hillside with families gathered to hear the Teacher speak the truth about how we should live and about the time when we will see Him face to face in heaven someday. What an amazing site that must have been.
I would like for you to think of this story a bit differently. One of the points of the story is for the disciples to believe through a very concrete action that they were to rely on Jesus for everything - that no matter what, they could rely on His power for their every need. Jesus wants us to drop off our burdens at His feet and sing merrily on our way.
I am in the paper writing business at Brite Seminary. I love the feeling of completing the paper I am writing and either sending it through the airways through email or printing and handing it in. It is such a great feeling to be unburdened of the document. At that point it is out of my hands. There is not another thing I can do with the paper.
God does the same thing for us. If we but drop off our burdens at His feet and walk away then he takes it from there and lifts the burden unto Himself and deals with the problem. If we keep our burdens to ourselves pretty soon we are “burdened” down with suffering, pain and sorrow. If we surrender our problems to the Father and rely on His to handle and carry them then we can walk away happy, singing and rejoicing because the King of King has taken it out of our hands. Leave your burdens at the feet of the Father and trade your sorrows for the joy of the Lord.
Take joy in the journey. 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.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Blessed Sunday to you all.
We are home at last. Bruce and I left on Friday evening to spend the weekend with Mom and Dad. Bruce and Travis built a deck for Mom and Dad on Saturday. Yes, they built a wonderful deck in one day! Sort of reminded me of an old storybook titles “Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel.” Any of you who are old enough to remember Captain Kangaroo should remember this wonderful story. Mom and I played “sidewalk superintendents” when the deck was about ¾ done. We parked out lawn chairs on the completed portion of the deck and enjoyed the cool night air until the mosquitoes drove us back into the house. I christened the deck today by having the grill moved out onto it and I grilled pork loin roasts. I think Mom and Dad are really going to enjoy it.
Another purpose for going to Mom and Dad’s this weekend was for the granddaughters to divide mother’s doll collection among themselves. Mom has collected china dolls for years and had around 200 beautiful dolls of all sizes, eras in history, brides and characters. It was really fascinating to watch the girls select their dolls. I watched as the eldest granddaughter chose the character dolls, such as Charlie Chaplin, clowns and others, while another chose dolls with blonde hair to match her own and Geni chose the more exotic dolls. I was to receive one of the dolls. My mamo had a china doll (the only doll she ever owned) when she was a young girl and through a sibling squabble the china face was broken. After I was grown I came across a baby doll with a china face and hands and presented it to her. It remained on her bed until she passed away nearly 20 years ago. The doll has been safely kept in Mom’s doll cabinet for all of these years. It was hard for Mom to part with all of them, but in thinking at age 76 of downsizing, she decided to begin with her precious collection.
We sang in worship today for the FUMC in Howe. The last time we sang there Casey was with us. I remember the pain he was in and how he almost had to sit during our singing. I missed him a lot today. I still get emotional when we sing, but if we ever stop singing as a family I am sure Casey would find a way to return if only to kick our butts and tell us to get out there and sing!
We were totally surprised that two sets of aunts and uncles came to worship to hear us sing. I had not seen them in quite a while and it was great to see them as well as the friends from Howe who have known me for so long. I then sang “It is Well with My Soul.” Due to technical difficulties, the pre-recorded accompaniment track would not play on the church’s equipment, so I shared a brief message and sang the piece A Capella.
Deuteronomy 33:27 “The eternal God is thy refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms.” Psalm 71:7 “I am as a wonder unto many; but Thou art my strong refuge.”
King David knew that to his kingdom he was an amazing king, but David knew that God, the Father, the Lord of Hosts, was his refuge. David knew that God was his stronghold just as the wall around Jerusalem was the stronghold of the people.
Today I sang “It is Well with My soul” without musical accompaniment. I ordered the accompaniment CD and requested overnight shipping only to find out it would not be shipped until later in the month. It is out of stock. When I read that notice I asked Bruce if there was a way to just download the CD from an online store and record it ourselves. He found just such a store that had the music I needed and downloaded the music to a CD. We began to try the CD in different players and all we got was static. So then a second download occurred last night and the music was placed on a flash drive. The flash drive was placed in a computer this morning prior to worship and the computer did not recognize it at all. A final attempt was made and the computer finally recognized the driver and a music picture came up on the screen with no sound. By this time worshipers are entering the sanctuary and I have not practiced with musical accompaniment. There was but one solution to the problem.
We gathered outside the church on the sidewalk just prior to worship and prayed for God to bless our efforts in our singing to glorify His name whether there was musical accompaniment or not and that the congregation would receive a blessing in His name. We placed ourselves in the everlasting God’s strong arms and surrendered ourselves to Him.
God in His kindness and tender mercies lifted us out of our vulnerable place and stood in our midst and allowed us to sing with His voice and His message. God made a way for me to sing the piece A Capella through the message I shared and the forgiving spirits of the “home” congregation. We leaned on the everlasting arms of Christ and sang.
The everlasting arms of God are untiring, ever safe, long enough and strong enough to hold us when we are uncertain, feel unsafe, vulnerable, heartbroken, full of sorrow and grief and when we need to cry. Lean on Jesus, friends, and allow Him to embrace you, make you feel safe and give you refuge from the storm. We are glad to be home!
Take joy in the journey. Missed writing to you. Love you all and have a safe and great Labor Day. 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.
We are home at last. Bruce and I left on Friday evening to spend the weekend with Mom and Dad. Bruce and Travis built a deck for Mom and Dad on Saturday. Yes, they built a wonderful deck in one day! Sort of reminded me of an old storybook titles “Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel.” Any of you who are old enough to remember Captain Kangaroo should remember this wonderful story. Mom and I played “sidewalk superintendents” when the deck was about ¾ done. We parked out lawn chairs on the completed portion of the deck and enjoyed the cool night air until the mosquitoes drove us back into the house. I christened the deck today by having the grill moved out onto it and I grilled pork loin roasts. I think Mom and Dad are really going to enjoy it.
Another purpose for going to Mom and Dad’s this weekend was for the granddaughters to divide mother’s doll collection among themselves. Mom has collected china dolls for years and had around 200 beautiful dolls of all sizes, eras in history, brides and characters. It was really fascinating to watch the girls select their dolls. I watched as the eldest granddaughter chose the character dolls, such as Charlie Chaplin, clowns and others, while another chose dolls with blonde hair to match her own and Geni chose the more exotic dolls. I was to receive one of the dolls. My mamo had a china doll (the only doll she ever owned) when she was a young girl and through a sibling squabble the china face was broken. After I was grown I came across a baby doll with a china face and hands and presented it to her. It remained on her bed until she passed away nearly 20 years ago. The doll has been safely kept in Mom’s doll cabinet for all of these years. It was hard for Mom to part with all of them, but in thinking at age 76 of downsizing, she decided to begin with her precious collection.
We sang in worship today for the FUMC in Howe. The last time we sang there Casey was with us. I remember the pain he was in and how he almost had to sit during our singing. I missed him a lot today. I still get emotional when we sing, but if we ever stop singing as a family I am sure Casey would find a way to return if only to kick our butts and tell us to get out there and sing!
We were totally surprised that two sets of aunts and uncles came to worship to hear us sing. I had not seen them in quite a while and it was great to see them as well as the friends from Howe who have known me for so long. I then sang “It is Well with My Soul.” Due to technical difficulties, the pre-recorded accompaniment track would not play on the church’s equipment, so I shared a brief message and sang the piece A Capella.
Deuteronomy 33:27 “The eternal God is thy refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms.” Psalm 71:7 “I am as a wonder unto many; but Thou art my strong refuge.”
King David knew that to his kingdom he was an amazing king, but David knew that God, the Father, the Lord of Hosts, was his refuge. David knew that God was his stronghold just as the wall around Jerusalem was the stronghold of the people.
Today I sang “It is Well with My soul” without musical accompaniment. I ordered the accompaniment CD and requested overnight shipping only to find out it would not be shipped until later in the month. It is out of stock. When I read that notice I asked Bruce if there was a way to just download the CD from an online store and record it ourselves. He found just such a store that had the music I needed and downloaded the music to a CD. We began to try the CD in different players and all we got was static. So then a second download occurred last night and the music was placed on a flash drive. The flash drive was placed in a computer this morning prior to worship and the computer did not recognize it at all. A final attempt was made and the computer finally recognized the driver and a music picture came up on the screen with no sound. By this time worshipers are entering the sanctuary and I have not practiced with musical accompaniment. There was but one solution to the problem.
We gathered outside the church on the sidewalk just prior to worship and prayed for God to bless our efforts in our singing to glorify His name whether there was musical accompaniment or not and that the congregation would receive a blessing in His name. We placed ourselves in the everlasting God’s strong arms and surrendered ourselves to Him.
God in His kindness and tender mercies lifted us out of our vulnerable place and stood in our midst and allowed us to sing with His voice and His message. God made a way for me to sing the piece A Capella through the message I shared and the forgiving spirits of the “home” congregation. We leaned on the everlasting arms of Christ and sang.
The everlasting arms of God are untiring, ever safe, long enough and strong enough to hold us when we are uncertain, feel unsafe, vulnerable, heartbroken, full of sorrow and grief and when we need to cry. Lean on Jesus, friends, and allow Him to embrace you, make you feel safe and give you refuge from the storm. We are glad to be home!
Take joy in the journey. Missed writing to you. Love you all and have a safe and great Labor Day. 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.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Happy Thursday!
Tonight I am writing to all who are facing surgery or who have recently had surgery, all who are ill and in need of wellness and healing. Tonight this writing is inspired by Carme, who today came through her surgery beautifully, and my brother Ken, who is having shoulder surgery in the morning.
Proverbs 20:27 “The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all of the inward parts of the belly.”
God is our Savior. He knows us inside and out. God knows our spiritual hearts and minds and also knows our physical bodies. When we face surgeries or illness and sometimes other unknowns, those are the times when we must rely on the constant strength of God.
I love the image of the candle. Candles are such a great source of hope and the picture of assurance that God is always with us. Lighthouses are like great candles on the water. These powerful beacons of light warn incoming ships of the rocks that are ahead, but they also invite those who have been out to sea to come home. A candle can provide light in the darkest of places and bring comfort when we need it the most.
So tonight in my prayers, I light candles of thanksgiving for Carme’s surgery and her recovery and Ken’s’ pending surgery in the morning. I invite them and all of you to lay your worries, concerns and burdens, fears and unknowns at the feet of the Father and do not take them back. Look to the heavens and lift your pain to the One who asks for your pain and then rest in that same One who has promised rest and never breaks His promises.
Take joy in the journey and may peace and comfort guide your way. Love you all and pray for Carme and Ken. 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.
Tonight I am writing to all who are facing surgery or who have recently had surgery, all who are ill and in need of wellness and healing. Tonight this writing is inspired by Carme, who today came through her surgery beautifully, and my brother Ken, who is having shoulder surgery in the morning.
Proverbs 20:27 “The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all of the inward parts of the belly.”
God is our Savior. He knows us inside and out. God knows our spiritual hearts and minds and also knows our physical bodies. When we face surgeries or illness and sometimes other unknowns, those are the times when we must rely on the constant strength of God.
I love the image of the candle. Candles are such a great source of hope and the picture of assurance that God is always with us. Lighthouses are like great candles on the water. These powerful beacons of light warn incoming ships of the rocks that are ahead, but they also invite those who have been out to sea to come home. A candle can provide light in the darkest of places and bring comfort when we need it the most.
So tonight in my prayers, I light candles of thanksgiving for Carme’s surgery and her recovery and Ken’s’ pending surgery in the morning. I invite them and all of you to lay your worries, concerns and burdens, fears and unknowns at the feet of the Father and do not take them back. Look to the heavens and lift your pain to the One who asks for your pain and then rest in that same One who has promised rest and never breaks His promises.
Take joy in the journey and may peace and comfort guide your way. Love you all and pray for Carme and Ken. 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.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Happy Wednesday!
I arrived at school this morning very early to meet with the BHE Fellowship group. My classroom door has recently been refinished (and beautifully, I might add) and a new lock has been installed. We did not receive new keys for our locks until yesterday. This morning I went to unlock the door and start the coffee and the door would not unlock. I tried and tried. I called Mr. Mac (one of my team) and he tried and tried. We called the custodian and she tried two different keys without any luck. Finally we called the head man over construction, who just happened to be in the building and he tried and tried using my key and the custodians keys. He is now calling downtown to get someone from maintenance to come out and unlock my door.
In the meantime I am sitting in my TCU chair outside my door drinking coffee and trying to figure out how I am going to teach 17 first graders out in the hall with all of their supplies on the other side of the door. Kevin, the construction foreman, finally called for a “super” key and the door opened. I love a happy ending (and my paper was turned in on time)!
1 Corinthians 12:7 “Something from the Spirit can be seen in each person, for the common good.”
Today I needed someone with a gift for locks and keys. Several people tried to open my door including me and no matter what we tried the door to my classroom would not open. It took the original key and the man who installed the lock to unlock the door. Another example of this scripture happened tonight. We are singing at my Mom and Dad’s church on Sunday morning. Daddy has requested I sing “It is Well with My Soul.” I cannot find the music anthology that contains this piece of music. I have turned my house upside down and cannot find it. So I looked online for an accompaniment track and place the order for overnight delivery. It is out of stock and will not be available until September 20.
I am now beginning to get really nervous and somewhat frustrated. I even tried to locate a downloadable track of the accompaniment. I could not find it. But Bruce did. He plays and searches the computer all the time and knew how to find the music I needed. Just like Kevin and my lock, Bruce continued to search until he found what I needed. I needed someone who knew the internet to find what I needed.
God gives us gifts. When we place our trust in Christ, He places within us the Holy Spirit. The Spirit deposits “house warming gifts” (ala Max Lucado) for use for the common good of His children. Today, this child, me, needed people with greater knowledge and experience that I did not have. God gave all of us strengths in our gifts. When we are given these gifts, God uses these gifts for the common good of others and to His glory. The verse says that “each” of us receives gifts. No one of us is ever gift denied or deprived. But we are expected to use our gifts to help others and to further the Kingdom . What is really awesome is that we have an uncommon God who uses common people to spread His Word and act in his name. He equips us with His gifts so that we may unlock the key to someone’s heart and life to further His Kingdom here on earth. Use the gifts God has given you to do ARKs. Remember Random Acts of Kindness.
Take joy in the journey and don’t forget your keys. 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.
I arrived at school this morning very early to meet with the BHE Fellowship group. My classroom door has recently been refinished (and beautifully, I might add) and a new lock has been installed. We did not receive new keys for our locks until yesterday. This morning I went to unlock the door and start the coffee and the door would not unlock. I tried and tried. I called Mr. Mac (one of my team) and he tried and tried. We called the custodian and she tried two different keys without any luck. Finally we called the head man over construction, who just happened to be in the building and he tried and tried using my key and the custodians keys. He is now calling downtown to get someone from maintenance to come out and unlock my door.
In the meantime I am sitting in my TCU chair outside my door drinking coffee and trying to figure out how I am going to teach 17 first graders out in the hall with all of their supplies on the other side of the door. Kevin, the construction foreman, finally called for a “super” key and the door opened. I love a happy ending (and my paper was turned in on time)!
1 Corinthians 12:7 “Something from the Spirit can be seen in each person, for the common good.”
Today I needed someone with a gift for locks and keys. Several people tried to open my door including me and no matter what we tried the door to my classroom would not open. It took the original key and the man who installed the lock to unlock the door. Another example of this scripture happened tonight. We are singing at my Mom and Dad’s church on Sunday morning. Daddy has requested I sing “It is Well with My Soul.” I cannot find the music anthology that contains this piece of music. I have turned my house upside down and cannot find it. So I looked online for an accompaniment track and place the order for overnight delivery. It is out of stock and will not be available until September 20.
I am now beginning to get really nervous and somewhat frustrated. I even tried to locate a downloadable track of the accompaniment. I could not find it. But Bruce did. He plays and searches the computer all the time and knew how to find the music I needed. Just like Kevin and my lock, Bruce continued to search until he found what I needed. I needed someone who knew the internet to find what I needed.
God gives us gifts. When we place our trust in Christ, He places within us the Holy Spirit. The Spirit deposits “house warming gifts” (ala Max Lucado) for use for the common good of His children. Today, this child, me, needed people with greater knowledge and experience that I did not have. God gave all of us strengths in our gifts. When we are given these gifts, God uses these gifts for the common good of others and to His glory. The verse says that “each” of us receives gifts. No one of us is ever gift denied or deprived. But we are expected to use our gifts to help others and to further the Kingdom . What is really awesome is that we have an uncommon God who uses common people to spread His Word and act in his name. He equips us with His gifts so that we may unlock the key to someone’s heart and life to further His Kingdom here on earth. Use the gifts God has given you to do ARKs. Remember Random Acts of Kindness.
Take joy in the journey and don’t forget your keys. 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.
Happy Tuesday!
Carme’s surgery was rescheduled for Thursday (the day after tomorrow). Please keep Carme and her family in your prayers.
My apologies for not writing last night. I have a paper due in my Christian Ethics class tomorrow so I spent last night writing a personal narrative informing our professor of my understanding of Christian ethics. This was a hard fought paper that was written one paragraph at a time. I did really struggle with this paper. I lost sleep over this paper and prayed my way through each and every sentence. Now it is in the hands of Bruce, my own personal editor, for a final editing to make sure I make sense. He is really great at that. I prayed for knowledge beyond myself as I was writing. Please pray for me and this paper as I tackle this class.
Hebrews 13:5 “I will never leave you or forsake you.”
I was paid on Friday. It is now Tuesday and the money is nearly gone. I have deemed myself just the “middle man.” I earn it, I buy things or pay bills and someone else gets it. With three of us in college at the same time the budget is really tight. And then Bruce’s work from the door company has really, really slowed down. Finances are a bit stretched right now. Each day in my prayer time I pray for God to meet our needs just for the day. I guess like any parent I tend to fret if the possibility is out there that I may not be able to meet the needs of my husband and my children. And then I read this passage through the eyes of the One who never runs out of what we really need to live our lives.
I am going to pair the scripture from Hebrews with one from Isaiah 48:12 “Hearken unto Me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I Am He, I Am the first, I also Am the last.”
I may run out of milk, butter eggs and Ruby Red Crystal Light (tragic) but God never runs out of love. His Word says that God’s love is unfailing. God’s love is constant and never tires. Even when we run out of understanding, He never runs out of understanding. When we are tired beyond tired and we still have to continue, His strength never leaves us and He never tires. And when someone is standing on the only nerve we have left, God’s patience is always there and never weakens.
Now having said all of that, I may fret over the temporal things of this world but I need to remember that God is really calling me to a higher spiritual plain. I have never been wealthy or rich by the standards of this world, but because I have God’s love I am always rich.
Take joy in the journey and much love to your 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.
Carme’s surgery was rescheduled for Thursday (the day after tomorrow). Please keep Carme and her family in your prayers.
My apologies for not writing last night. I have a paper due in my Christian Ethics class tomorrow so I spent last night writing a personal narrative informing our professor of my understanding of Christian ethics. This was a hard fought paper that was written one paragraph at a time. I did really struggle with this paper. I lost sleep over this paper and prayed my way through each and every sentence. Now it is in the hands of Bruce, my own personal editor, for a final editing to make sure I make sense. He is really great at that. I prayed for knowledge beyond myself as I was writing. Please pray for me and this paper as I tackle this class.
Hebrews 13:5 “I will never leave you or forsake you.”
I was paid on Friday. It is now Tuesday and the money is nearly gone. I have deemed myself just the “middle man.” I earn it, I buy things or pay bills and someone else gets it. With three of us in college at the same time the budget is really tight. And then Bruce’s work from the door company has really, really slowed down. Finances are a bit stretched right now. Each day in my prayer time I pray for God to meet our needs just for the day. I guess like any parent I tend to fret if the possibility is out there that I may not be able to meet the needs of my husband and my children. And then I read this passage through the eyes of the One who never runs out of what we really need to live our lives.
I am going to pair the scripture from Hebrews with one from Isaiah 48:12 “Hearken unto Me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I Am He, I Am the first, I also Am the last.”
I may run out of milk, butter eggs and Ruby Red Crystal Light (tragic) but God never runs out of love. His Word says that God’s love is unfailing. God’s love is constant and never tires. Even when we run out of understanding, He never runs out of understanding. When we are tired beyond tired and we still have to continue, His strength never leaves us and He never tires. And when someone is standing on the only nerve we have left, God’s patience is always there and never weakens.
Now having said all of that, I may fret over the temporal things of this world but I need to remember that God is really calling me to a higher spiritual plain. I have never been wealthy or rich by the standards of this world, but because I have God’s love I am always rich.
Take joy in the journey and much love to your 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.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Blessed Sunday to you all!
OMG! To quote one of the members of the Praise Team “It is on fire in here today!” Worship was an emersion in the Holy Spirit. The music was so inspiring. The readings were hard to hear but they spoke of how God, through the power of the Holy Spirit can change us from the inside out so that we can act according to His will and serve as he would have us serve. Praise God from Whom all blessings flow and may our worship continue to be inspired by the power of the Holy Spirit and feel like Holy Fire is all around us!
Sundays have returned to worship, laundry, grading papers and tonight, reading my first reading for the class on Christian Ethics. I am asking your prayers for me to understand as I take this class. I have a paper due on Wednesday. I have done the reading and I will write on Monday and Tuesday night.
Carme has her corrective breast surgery on Tuesday. Please keep her, David and Shaleena in your prayers.
Luke 6:38 “Give, and it shall be given unto you, good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom.”
I once saw a wonderful illustration of this scripture. First the leader took an empty aquarium and filled it with small cannonballs and then asked the group if the aquarium was full. The response was “yes.” Next the leader poured pea gravel over the cannonballs watching it work its way down and through the cannonballs until it appeared the aquarium was full and then asked the question again, “Do you think it is full?” The response again was, “yes.” Next the leader poured sand over the gravel and cannonballs and appeared to fill the aquarium and asked the question again. This time the group was not so sure of their answer. Finally the leader took pitchers of water and poured over all of the filling in the aquarium until it was (you guessed it) overflowing. The illustration was to show how much God gives to us. God’s giving to us begins with Jesus. God gave us His best and all He had and even close to death Jesus continued to give when He forgave the thief who hung beside Him and told the man he would be with Him in paradise. God’s love for us is filled-up, pressed down, shaken to the bottom and then filled once again to overflowing. Just when we think God cannot give us any more love and any more blessings, He shakes them down and pours on more.
Jesus is the perfect model of a life given in obedient service to His Father who has learned His lessons in giving very well. God, through Jesus, gave His time, His mercy, His love, His grace, His forgiveness, His kindness, His heart and finally His life. We follow the greatest giver of all. I know I can never give as much as Jesus gave, but I can give my time. I can be kind. I can forgive. I can love. I can be merciful and I can let the love of God overflow through me to those around me.
Our family has been blessed in the last year with phenomenal gifts of love, grace and kindness. We have been shown a model of the godly life through the acts and generosity of others. We could never repay these kindnesses, but we can pass them onto others. Remember our plan to wake up each day and say, “Jesus, I love you and I want to serve you.” When we give to others then God can keep giving of His blessings and keeping them overflowing.
Take joy in the journey and enjoy the cooler weather! 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.
OMG! To quote one of the members of the Praise Team “It is on fire in here today!” Worship was an emersion in the Holy Spirit. The music was so inspiring. The readings were hard to hear but they spoke of how God, through the power of the Holy Spirit can change us from the inside out so that we can act according to His will and serve as he would have us serve. Praise God from Whom all blessings flow and may our worship continue to be inspired by the power of the Holy Spirit and feel like Holy Fire is all around us!
Sundays have returned to worship, laundry, grading papers and tonight, reading my first reading for the class on Christian Ethics. I am asking your prayers for me to understand as I take this class. I have a paper due on Wednesday. I have done the reading and I will write on Monday and Tuesday night.
Carme has her corrective breast surgery on Tuesday. Please keep her, David and Shaleena in your prayers.
Luke 6:38 “Give, and it shall be given unto you, good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom.”
I once saw a wonderful illustration of this scripture. First the leader took an empty aquarium and filled it with small cannonballs and then asked the group if the aquarium was full. The response was “yes.” Next the leader poured pea gravel over the cannonballs watching it work its way down and through the cannonballs until it appeared the aquarium was full and then asked the question again, “Do you think it is full?” The response again was, “yes.” Next the leader poured sand over the gravel and cannonballs and appeared to fill the aquarium and asked the question again. This time the group was not so sure of their answer. Finally the leader took pitchers of water and poured over all of the filling in the aquarium until it was (you guessed it) overflowing. The illustration was to show how much God gives to us. God’s giving to us begins with Jesus. God gave us His best and all He had and even close to death Jesus continued to give when He forgave the thief who hung beside Him and told the man he would be with Him in paradise. God’s love for us is filled-up, pressed down, shaken to the bottom and then filled once again to overflowing. Just when we think God cannot give us any more love and any more blessings, He shakes them down and pours on more.
Jesus is the perfect model of a life given in obedient service to His Father who has learned His lessons in giving very well. God, through Jesus, gave His time, His mercy, His love, His grace, His forgiveness, His kindness, His heart and finally His life. We follow the greatest giver of all. I know I can never give as much as Jesus gave, but I can give my time. I can be kind. I can forgive. I can love. I can be merciful and I can let the love of God overflow through me to those around me.
Our family has been blessed in the last year with phenomenal gifts of love, grace and kindness. We have been shown a model of the godly life through the acts and generosity of others. We could never repay these kindnesses, but we can pass them onto others. Remember our plan to wake up each day and say, “Jesus, I love you and I want to serve you.” When we give to others then God can keep giving of His blessings and keeping them overflowing.
Take joy in the journey and enjoy the cooler weather! 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.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Happy Saturday!
Proverbs 18:10 “I saw of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous runneth into it, and it is safe.”
“This is the air I breathe. This is the air I breathe. Your Holy Presence living in me.” This phrase is from one of my favorite songs titled Breathe. I find it completely profound that the last song Casey would ever sing was this one song. He was using oxygen, his lungs were covered in sarcoma cancer and unknown to him and us that the cancer was rapidly talking his life and yet he sang this song with his dad.
“Your very Word spoken to me.” Isn’t it amazing that just the mere mention of the name of Jesus can calm the storm on the sea? Just breathing the name of Jesus is the power of the Holy Spirit that lives in each one of us who have a relationship with the Father. Breathing the name of Jesus takes me to the safest place I can go. When I breathe the name of Jesus I am no longer lost. I am safe in the arms of the Father. Sometimes when my soul is in pieces from sorrow or hurt and I can’t even pray, I can speak the name of Jesus and that is all I need because God knows my heart.
God’s name is a strong, safe place to go. The righteous go run into it and they are safe. I always think of a righteous person as being one who is strong and fearless. Maybe a righteous person is one who is smart enough to run to the Father first instead of trying everything else and then going to God. I love the feeling and security of safety. I know Casey is in the safety of the Father’s arms and is without fear.
When Casey would be asleep I would stand or sit for long periods of time and just watch him breathe just as I did when he was a baby. With each I breath I watched him take, I felt a sense of peace just knowing he was still with us. When I speak the name of Jesus or breathe the name of Jesus I have a sense of peace knowing God is still with me and even sometimes through tears, I rejoice and give thanks.
See you in worship in the morning and take joy in the journey. Love you all dear friends, 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.
Proverbs 18:10 “I saw of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous runneth into it, and it is safe.”
“This is the air I breathe. This is the air I breathe. Your Holy Presence living in me.” This phrase is from one of my favorite songs titled Breathe. I find it completely profound that the last song Casey would ever sing was this one song. He was using oxygen, his lungs were covered in sarcoma cancer and unknown to him and us that the cancer was rapidly talking his life and yet he sang this song with his dad.
“Your very Word spoken to me.” Isn’t it amazing that just the mere mention of the name of Jesus can calm the storm on the sea? Just breathing the name of Jesus is the power of the Holy Spirit that lives in each one of us who have a relationship with the Father. Breathing the name of Jesus takes me to the safest place I can go. When I breathe the name of Jesus I am no longer lost. I am safe in the arms of the Father. Sometimes when my soul is in pieces from sorrow or hurt and I can’t even pray, I can speak the name of Jesus and that is all I need because God knows my heart.
God’s name is a strong, safe place to go. The righteous go run into it and they are safe. I always think of a righteous person as being one who is strong and fearless. Maybe a righteous person is one who is smart enough to run to the Father first instead of trying everything else and then going to God. I love the feeling and security of safety. I know Casey is in the safety of the Father’s arms and is without fear.
When Casey would be asleep I would stand or sit for long periods of time and just watch him breathe just as I did when he was a baby. With each I breath I watched him take, I felt a sense of peace just knowing he was still with us. When I speak the name of Jesus or breathe the name of Jesus I have a sense of peace knowing God is still with me and even sometimes through tears, I rejoice and give thanks.
See you in worship in the morning and take joy in the journey. Love you all dear friends, 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.
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