Since my last blog, I went on a mission trip.  I am not bragging because I know many of you have gone on lots of trips and many have made more of an impact than I did.  Likewise, if you have not gone on a trip, I am not judging you.  Until a year ago, I had no desire to go.  This is less about my mission trip but more about “tasting and seeing that the Lord is God”.  God is not asking all of us to go on a trip, or teach a group, or write a blog, or sing a special.  But He is asking each of us to do something!

‘The White Horse’ is a coffee table book I bought a few years ago. I bring it out occasionally to display. On the cover and inside the book are many beautiful photos of a white horse with a long flowing mane. Revelation 19:11-16, speaking of Jesus returning on a white horse, is symbolic. However, my love of horses likes to imagine Jesus actually returning riding on a beautiful white horse. When Jesus does return, what a sight it will be!! In this life we need to always be alert and preparing for that day (Matthew 24:42). Jesus will come again.

I’ve never liked saying, “Bless you” when someone sneezes or whatever. People often think I’m rude because of it. However, the way I always thought about it was that God is the only one who can bless so who am I to say I’m “blessing” someone. Recently, though, I heard BLESS* used as an acrostic. (Anyone who knows me knows that I love acrostics anyway.) And that kind of BLESS I can do and so can you.

Statements that deeply bother me are someone saying, “He/She didn’t deserve that,” when speaking of an unfortunate event, illness, or situation, and “Just follow your heart.” Both of those statements are dangerous for Christians to believe. Are bad happenings to “good” people unfair? Are our hearts’ desires safe to guide us?

I’ve been a full-time caregiver for my mother-in-law now for the last 4 years. Her most recent hospital stay landed her in rehab again, this time for a more extended period. I stop in or call to check in every day. I want to know the people taking care of her are doing things right – i.e. the way I would do things!  I pray every day for the people who take care of her and there is a part of me that wishes I could be involved in their training. After all, I know her well and I want them to know her and love her the way I love her! I want to train my replacement caregiver.

Do you remember the line “Move that Bus” from Extreme Home Makeover? I want to share a story with you where we got to experience that very occasion. 

Ken and I were living in Illinois, and a contractor contacted Ken about helping him gather the community together and help remodel a home for a couple in a small community.  The wife had been in a car accident one night driving home after a double shift. She tried to crawl out of the car and in the process paralyzed herself from the waist down.

Before you groan too much, give me a chance to explain.  I too am tired of Christmas in July.  Goodness it was 100 degrees last week in east Texas, I do not want to watch movies with Christmas trees and I do not want to purchase Christmas decorations.  I don’t even want to think about purchasing Christmas gifts.  I like to think about all of that when the weather is much cooler.  But if you are a lover of Christmas in July, don’t let me rain on your parade.

Picking up our granddaughter at VBS she came running to me shaking a piece of paper yelling ‘Look Mimi, It’s all about Jesus!!’. I glanced at the piece of paper nodding my head in agreement of what was causing all her excitement. … Drawn in seven small squares on the piece of paper was the story ‘All about Jesus’, it truly was something to get excited about. At 5 years old, or any age, what powerful truth to learn.

For the last three years, I’ve been trying to lose weight, but I’m only partially successful. Although I’ve lost about 20 pounds from my weight when I started, I can’t seem to lose any more. I have not been on a particular “diet,” just trying to eat healthier and be more aware of what I’m eating and when. That made me think. Our spiritual life may need to be on a “diet” as well. Just as our bodies must have certain nutrients to be healthy, so does our spiritual life.

What is TRUTH? In today’s world TRUTH is widely taught to be whatever seems right to a person at any given time. Think about that. Could that thinking be any more deadly?

I’m God’s favorite. Every time I would make the proclamation to my friend she would scoff, “God doesn’t have favorites.”  

But there it is in scripture – Luke 1:28 “And he (Gabriel) came to her (Mary) and said, Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!”

We live in a very small rural community in east Texas.  It is about 20 minutes from the metropolis of Jacksonville (haha) and I have been blessed to live here most of my life.  For the first two years of marriage, Greg and I lived in an apartment in town.  It was a great apartment and a good experience, but these two country kids moved back to the woods as soon as we could afford to. For the first three decades of my life, I attended Friendship Baptist Church, just down the road from our house.

On our spiritual journey, God gives us a beautiful life to live. It is full of adventure, learning, serving, crying, climbing to new heights, struggling, sharing, building, falling, climbing again, etc. While our soul resides in our skin, bones, organ systems, tendons, and muscles, our flesh can lead us to develop a big case of nearsightedness.

Often, we plan and think that things either go according to plan or get messed up. However, we fail to remember that everything is in God’s hands and He makes sure things happen for His plan. Check out Proverbs 16:9, “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.” Many times we decide we want to do something or go to a certain place, but things happen at the last minute to make those plans change. Have you ever thought about what a difference that makes in life?

What comes to your mind when I say hospitality? Is it cooking a big, impressive meal for folks you personally invite into your home at a particular time and date? Perhaps a party with a theme where you go all out with decorations and food, and maybe even costumes?

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13 NIV). Shortly after Jesus gave these instructions to His disciples He laid down His life for those He loved. His heart was broken by the effects of sin. In the aftermath of Jesus’s death and resurrection, and the gifting of the Holy Spirit, the gospel took off like wild fire. Jesus’s disciples wanted the world to know about His great love.

I took a short road trip today.  Just me and Jesus headed west to visit a person I love dearly.  A person I pray for often.  A person who is heartsick and unsure of the next move.  I listened to a Bible study then I turned the radio on.  Seemed like a good way to spend Good Friday, but I kept finding myself looking to Saturday.

Where do you worship? Hopefully, you worship at church regularly. After all, the Bible tells us to meet together (Hebrews 10:25). However, that is not the only way that we can worship. We can worship with just a small group at home or somewhere else, possibly in a Bible study group or just in an everyday conversation. You can even worship all alone—except for the presence of God with you. After all, He is the purpose of worship.

Do you remember that commercial on TV from a few years ago?  The guy was in different places asking “Can you hear me now?””  I find myself saying that sometimes on phone calls when the connection is bad. 

Over the past few years, I have been convicted about really listening to people when they talk.  I’ve watched videos about things not to do in a conversation with someone.

3139, her number, 2262, my number. Can you go? Will you come? What are you doing? Where are we going? When will you be here? What time does it start? Who’s driving? How long can you stay? Can you go? Who can we tell? My best friend and I knew each other’s number by heart. The plans made, and questions asked, were in the thousands. Fourth grade we met. Twelfth grade we graduated. If our phone minutes were crossties, we could likely lay train track across central Arkansas.