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Our family had the opportunity to attend a rodeo in Wyoming a couple of weeks ago.  They start this event with riders on horseback carrying the American flag.  As the rider gallops around the arena with the flag waving, the announcer recites the essay Old Glory.  I was so moved with the scene and the words, that I wanted to share a part of it.

“My name is Old Glory; I fly atop the world’s largest buildings; I stand watch in American’s halls of justice; I fly majestically over institutes of learning; I stand guard with power in the world.  Look up and see me!

I stand for peace, honor, truth and justice.  I stand for freedom.  I am confident.  I am arrogant.  I am proud.  I bow to no one.  I am worshiped, saluted, loved, revered, respected, feared.

I have fought in every battle of war for more than 200 years.  I was flown at Valley Forge, Gettysburg, Shiloh, and Appamatox.  I was there at San Juan Hill, trenches of France, the Argonne Forest, Anzio, Rome, and the beaches of Normandy. I was there in Iraq and Afghanistan, and atop the World Trade Center.

I was there.  I led my troops.  I was dirty, battleworn and tired, but my soldiers cheered me, and I was proud.

I have been burned, torn and trampled on the streets of countries that I have helped set free.  I shall overcome for I am strong.

I have borne silent witness to all America’s finest hours.  But my finest hours are yet to come.  When I am torn into strips and used as bandages for my wounded comrades on the battlefield or when I am flown at halfmast to honor my soldiers or when I lie in the trembling arms of a grieving parent at the grave of their fallen son or daughter.

I am proud.  I am the flag of the United States of America.”  (There are several versions of this, but this one is by Howard Schnauber,)

As we celebrate, the fourth of July, I pray for the USA and the flag that proudly waves!

 

“To Thee I lift up my eyes, O Thou who art enthroned in heaven.”  Psalm 123:1

The phrase “Heads UP” is usually shouted at baseball games when a foul ball or line drive threatens to hit some unsuspecting person on the head while they are eating a hot dog or looking in another direction. Lately, I’ve found myself using an adapted version, “Look UP”  more and more in the grocery stores, sidewalks, and other places.

There are many things about cell phones about which I marvel, but one of the most annoying things about them is that they encourage people to walk and try to text at the same time!  If walking and chewing gum is hard, this feat is impossible!

Randy and I were literally running through the airport the other day because our flight was late, and we had a connection.  As we were threading our way through the crowd of people, I kept having to say, “Look UP, please.”  It’s sad to me that these folks miss so much of what is going on around them because they are always looking down!

They miss the servicemen being deployed; they miss the veteran who is walking with a cane; they miss the little boy who is marveling at his surroundings; they miss the couple holding hands and gazing into each other’s eyes; they miss moms and dads who are herding their kids; they miss loved ones kissing and hugging good bye; they miss grandparents taking their grand kids on an adventure; they miss the chance to meet new people; they miss the chance to give direction to those who seem lost; they miss Starbucks;  they miss the excitement of travel; they miss watching the planes land and take off; they miss the uniformed pilots and flight attendants who walk through; and they miss the beauty which is human kind.  They are locked away in their own world.

While on vacation in Wyoming with our family, we looked up from our window to see a beautiful rainbow in the sky.  It always reminds me of God’s promise to us, and what an amazing God we serve!  We miss a lot of blessings if we don’t remember to keep our Heads UP and Look UP!

“Keep looking up!  I learn from the past, dream about the future, and look up!”  Rachel Boston

 

“As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you.  Abide in me.” John 15:9

On this Father’s Day weekend, I am so fortunate to have and have had great men and Dads in my life.  My Daddy was a farmer, a “developer”, a man of faith, and a family man.  Randy’s Dad was a salesman, a sports figure, a man of faith, and a family man.  Randy is a minister, sports lover, a man of faith, and a family man.  Rob is a director of sports, lover of sports, a man of faith, and a family man.  Lee is a medical salesman, a lover of everything, a man of faith, and a family man. I love that the tie that binds is family and faith.

If you look at the one factor that most closely correlates with success in a family, it is the presence of a father.  “The DADS should provide Direction, Availability, Discipline, and Spirituality.  The most important of these is availability.  If you are not available, you can’t be there to give direction, your discipline will be resented,  and your spiritual guidance will be rejected.”  If Dads aren’t there for their children someone else will be, and it won’t always be someone you will like.

I love seeing Dads who coach their kids in sports, attend church with their families, give lots of hugs to their kids, put their arm around their children’s mom, encourage their children, and lead their family spiritually.  These guys set the example for their children, and they are giving them quite a gift!

On this Father’s Day, it is fitting that we honor the men in our lives who are strong in their faith, character, and love.  They exemplify the Father’s love through their own.

“My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me.”  Jim Valvano

Happy Father’s Day, guys!

 

 

 

“I lift up my eyes up to the hills from whence does my help come? My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth.”  Psalm 121: 1-2

While visiting Mt. Pilatus in Switzerland, we rode a gondola to the top of this incredible mountain. As I looked down upon all the beauty, someone said, “How can anyone deny the existence of God amidst this creation!”  I agree.  It defies all logic and can only be the product of a loving God.

I couldn’t help but think of Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music,  and for some unknown reason, the childhood book, Heidi, came to my mind with the vivid pictures of mountains, goats, and fresh air.  Ironically, the gift shop downstairs had the book, so I bought it and read anew the story by Johanna Spyri.

The story is of an orphan girl who comes to live with her grandfather on the mountain (Shirley Temple played Heidi in the movie).  A crotchety old soul, Heidi wins him over with her love of his mountains, his stories, and his ways.  She thrives in this setting with fresh air, sunshine, friends, and love.  Her happiness and joy leads the father of an ailing child to seek Heidi out to be his daughter’s companion.  He moves her to the city away from her strength, her help, the mountains, and she begins to die a little each day from homesickness even while lifting the spirits of his daughter with tales of her life in the mountains.

The father has compassion for Heidi and transports her back to her mountain home where she regains her strength. Klara, the sick child, comes to visit, she is cured and walks again.  A simple, childlike, feel good ending, but it is so possible with God.

Many times through circumstances or by my own hand, I find myself homesick for scripture, prayer, bible study, Christian friends, and so many other things.  When this happens, I find myself ailing and need to return to the strength they provide.  God has compassion for my situation, and always sends the help I need.  God’s word is the greatest healing force and help on earth!  We only need to read it, believe it, stand on it, and practice it!

“It’s not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.”  Sir Edmund Hillary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“One generation shall commend your works to another, and they shall declare Your mighty acts.”  Psalm 145:4

Randy and I recently returned from a Rhine river cruise which was our retirement gift to each other.  My sisters and husbands accompanied us, and we celebrated our Mom as well.  As we toured these countries, I was in awe of all the churches, cathedrals, and castles dating back to 1000 AD.

The French and Germans celebrated the holiday of Ascension while we were there which comes 40 days after the resurrection of Christ. Shops, banks, and businesses were closed to celebrate.  Although it is a religious holiday, I saw no evidence of worship or celebrations other than giving people a three day weekend.  What’s missing?

The beautiful churches are empty except for tourists, the crosses on top have been replaced or overshadowed by golden roosters (which remind people to get up earlier on Sunday to attend church), and the mood of the people is leaning toward the secular.   What’s missing?

Almost all the people there with whom we had conversations say they are Christian with Catholics being the majority.  Do they attend church?  Not regularly, just for special days, is the answer.  They hold Sundays for family, outings, and social events. They dress in their finest, have brunch, but don’t worship.  What’s missing?

It occurred to me that although I was quick to judge them, we are not always so different.  We attend worship when it is convenient, volunteer when it suits us, and give when we can.  We have many beautiful churches that are becoming less crowded as the years go by.  As someone said, “There is a lot of “blue” hair there.  Yes, there is, but these are the people who sacrificed and built these churches for the faith and Lord in which they believed.  They are still the faithful ones.  Everyone can learn from them.  What’s missing?

I pray that the next generation will realize that they are “what’s missing”, and work with the older generation to extend Christianity and build a bigger and better kingdom.  One group does not need to exclude the other to make God’s kingdom on earth a stronger, better and more unified one.

What’s missing is a unified church which exists for one purpose – to glorify our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

“Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress; working together is success.”  Henry Ford

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“You don’t have to wear a patch on your arm to have honor.”  A Few Good Men

We had the opportunity to visit the new Suntrust Park early in the season and watch the Braves win their fifth in a row!  I’m keenly aware of all the inconvenience this stadium has caused in this area, but I have to say, that it is a beautiful place and very well done.

The lights underneath the decks are red, white, and blue, and the fireworks which are displayed at the beginning, end, and after home runs are patriotic as well.  People stood reverently and joined in singing the National Anthem, and I loved the feeling of celebrating America as well as a baseball team.

Although I could have ordered dinner from our table,  I chose to set out to find the BFB (Best Fan Burger) at one of the grills inside.  I highly recommend it as it comes with everything on it and curly fries for the bargain price of $18.00!!  As I was standing waiting for the BFB, I realized that the announcer had just introduced the group that was singing the National Anthem, and the pregame was beginning.

Everyone around me was talking, eating, laughing, but in the moment when the first words, “O say can you see..” were heard, people began to stop in their tracks and offer their respect to this country.  Men removed their caps and faced the screen, parents silenced their children and helped them place their hands over their hearts, the wait staff quit their duties and stood quietly and still, and people who where sitting at tables eating -swallowed and stood.  As I stood there, I couldn’t help feeling the sense of honor and pride that we as Americans enjoy.

I can only imagine the way a soldier must feel when their duty is done and they come home to the country for whose freedom they fought.  I pray that we always show them the love, respect, and gratitude they deserve.

“To those whose lives of courage prepared the way for me; whose works became my heritage, whose harvest I may reap; who left for me a legacy that I have yet to earn – to them in gratitude shall my heart be turned.” Sally DeFord

Tolerance is defined as “indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from or conflicting with one’s own.”  Tolerate, on the other hand, is defined as “allowing the existence or practice of (something that one does not like or agree with) without interference.  To endure.”

When we served the church in Newborn, Randy had made it his mission to bring in young people by forming a church men’s softball team.  He reasoned that this would provide fun for the men while helping him get acquainted.  On Saturday afternoons, we would gather to play other church teams around the area in a makeshift field.  These were strictly for fun!

On one particular occasion,  we faced a Baptist team which had been champions over the years.  They had a father and two sons who were the stars of the team, and they brought along the wife and mother who was one of the most obnoxious fans I have ever seen.  She yelled insults, curse words, instructions, and threats during the entire game.  The lady had a reputation, and no one ever crossed her.  Everyone tolerated her!

Randy was up to bat and the score was tied.  The woman stood up and began to hurl insults.  Suddenly, I saw Randy began to walk toward her, and time stood still.  He got right up to her and said, “M’am, we are supposed to be Christians here, but the best thing you can do right now is sit down and be quiet.”  The crowd went completely still. The woman sat down, but snarled, “My husband will see you later, Preacher!”  We won the game which made it even worse!

The rest of the day, I watched for that man.  It was like the scene in the western, High Noon.  Sure enough, about sundown, he drove up in his truck, got out, walked to our door, and knocked.  This was a huge man!  I hid behind the curtains with my child, and Randy walked to the door.  The two men walked outside and appeared deep in conversation. In a moment, the man slapped Randy on the back, and they both dissolved into laughter. It seems the husband had always wanted to tell his wife “to sit down and be quiet.”  He’d been too tolerant!  She would be tolerated no more he vowed!  It took one person to speak up to end the misery others tolerated!

I tolerate a lot of things like cellphones in grocery stores, (I have been guilty), traffic congestion, texting while driving, inconsiderate people, robo calls, cannonballs in the middle of my water class, and many other annoyances. I guess I’ve built up a tolerance to them.

We tolerate a lot of things as Christians these days.  Billy Graham said, “We have become tolerant of way too many things that sap us of our convictions, beliefs, and faith.  Tolerance is applied too often where it does not belong.”

“I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine you have been taught.”  Romans 16:17

We might have to tolerate some things, but lately, I have begun to speak out.  I may be preaching to the choir, but at least I feel better!!

“My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw.  All I am, I owe to my mother.  I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual, and physical education I received from her.”  George Washington   I would have to add spiritual education to the list.

A friend whose daughter was expecting her first child confessed to her mom that she was worried about having this baby because she didn’t know if she would love him or her.  Her mom replied, “Honey, all you have to do is look at your baby, and the love will be instantaneous.”

That advice goes for any mother whether their child is biological, adopted, fostered, or any scientific miracle!  There just is an instant love!  In order to nourish that love, there is nothing better a mother can teach their child than love for God.  God honors mothers who honor Him.

In the first five years of my life, I was sick constantly with tonsillitis. I ran high fevers, had seizures, and was generally pretty miserable.  I can still remember lying in bed, burning up with fever, looking up and seeing my mama’s face.  Hers was the last face I saw before I drifted off to sleep, and the first face I would see when I woke up. I can remember her saying, “I wish I could trade places with you, sugar.”  She would have done that gladly for any of her girls.

As mothers, we all go through times when we wish we could  “trade places” and bear some of our children’s pain, disappointments, illnesses, bad decisions, and other issues.  Such is a mother’s love.  We would love to spare them all the pain life can bring, but we have to turn them over to one who has a greater love for them than we.

I can only imagine the sheer agony of Mary, the Mother of Jesus as she watched her son suffer on the cross.  She was the first face He saw when He was born, was with him during his short life, and was among those who gathered at the foot of the cross.  I know she would have willingly “traded places” with her son.

Mothers are God’s angels here on earth to show His love to their children.  “The love of a mother is the veil of a softer light between the heart and the heavenly Father.”  Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Randy said it best in 2003 when he wrote, “A mother’s love is often defined as ‘that love which most resembles the love of God’.  Her love is life giving and often the most sacrificial – just like His.  Many of us love God today because our Mother’s love best explained and exemplified His.”

Happy Mother’s Day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Serendipity is defined as “the gift of being able to make delightful discoveries by pure accident.” Horace Warpole

God uses many methods to touch our lives, and I think He can do it serendipitously. Randy and I discovered this during our first months at our new churches in 1976. Our discoveries began the morning Randy left to take his things to the office at the church. We discovered that neither church had an office for the minister. They also had no assistant to type bulletins and answer the phone, no phone, no nursery, no choir or director, and no committees of any kind. These were not delightful discoveries!

While Randy was off making his discoveries, I was discovering things on my own.  I discovered an old mimeograph machine in the pantry, complete with paper, stencils and a supply of ink.  I remember wondering why that would be in the parsonage!?  I also discovered that there were no young families in the church, thus no need for a nursery.  Ah, serendipity!!

As we begin to compare notes, we ascertained, quite correctly, that the office of the church begins and ends in the parsonage. The church and parsonage phone number was one and the same. It makes you very conscious of how you come across when you answer the phone!  I was suddenly promoted to assistant to the minister, typist, and my favorite job – choir director!  We did discover that we had a pianist in both churches!

I quickly discovered that Randy needed a place in which to read, study, write sermons, counsel folks, and hold small meetings, so we cleaned out the front room of the parsonage.  I could type, use stencils and the mimeograph machine, so on every Saturday, I typed the bulletins and ran them off for both churches.  We folded them together on Saturday nights while enjoying the ever popular TV show, Hee Haw!

We discovered that most of the young families were attending another church while keeping their name on the roll of our churches.  That would not do, so Randy set about visiting each family and inviting them to come back and try their home church.  I manned the nursery that Sunday just in case they took him up on the invitation.  That day, we had four young couples with children who came and needed a nursery. They in turn invited friends. As word spread, we had more each Sunday until before I knew it, there were plenty to share the nursery job!  Who knew we had so many young families there?  Serendipity!

We discovered that many of the members could sing, they just had never been asked about forming a choir!  We started with five, and we might not have been good, but we were willing!  We grew to 12!  Serendipity!

Members began to feel pride in their church and enjoy our Sundays together.  It wasn’t long until we had rejuvenated the ever popular Methodist covered dish lunch!  What a wonderful thing to discover folks with which you can make a church family!  I love them to this day!! Thank God for serendipity!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“A smile costs nothing, but creates much.  It enriches those who receive it without impoverishing those who give it. It happens in a flash, and the memory of it sometimes lasts forever.  It is rest to the weary, daylight to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad and nature’s best antidote for trouble.  Yet, it cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is no earthly good until it is given away.  Nobody needs a smile so much as those who have none left to give.”  Sign in a Department Store

I recently lunched with a friend of mine who just lost her sister to cancer. As she was telling me about her sister, she was smiling as she relived moments.  It seems that the one thing everybody agreed upon when thinking of her sister was her smile.  I love that she was known for that. Years ago I learned that if you give a smile, it takes a really hard hearted person not to return it.

There was a lady in our church in Newborn who gave her smiles away every day and brightened so many lives.  Betty owned and operated the only “store” in the tiny community.  She not only stocked the shelves with bread, milk, and canned goods, but she flipped burgers and grilled hot dogs every day for hunters, workers, and the people who lived there. Betty’s husband, Steve, worked for Governor George Busbee in Atlanta, and they could have lived anywhere.  She certainly didn’t need to work, but she loved the interaction with people, and she was always smiling and laughing.

At this point in our ministry, I was a stay at home/office mom, so I would strap Rob onto the back of my bike, and we would ride up to see “Miss” Betty at the store.  As an added bonus, we would watch the train come through town.  Betty, Steve, and their family adopted us, and we were always included in their Sunday lunches, Friday night fish fries, and generally anytime the family got together.  I don’t remember knowing a stronger, sweeter woman.

When Steve died of lung caner, she smiled through her tears as the community paid our respects to him.  When her only daughter died after a fight with cancer leaving a husband and two small children, she once again smiled through her ordeal.  I often thought about how people “smile through tears” and how we explain that phenomenon. I think sometimes we are so miserable with our situation such as loss, a disappointment, a death, that we cry.  Then, we think of a memory or something in our lives connected with that person or situation that is so positive that we smile thinking of it.  I like to think both of the people I mentioned smiled so much because Jesus made their life so positive and so full of love and thanksgiving.  They smiled through tears because they have hope, family and friends who love them, and a Savior who knows what it is like to suffer and emerge victorious!

I know a smile can change lives, it changes mine.  The picture is just to make you smile!!

“Let your smile change the world.  Don’t let the world change your smile.”  John Walker