"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." So wrote Charles Dickens in his well-known book A Tale of Two Cities. That could also describe our recent trip around the country!
We returned home just over three weeks ago from an 11-week road trip. Since we have been home, we have been asked a lot of questions about the trip. The most frequently asked question is some form of what was your favorite thing?
Answering that question is more difficult than you might imagine, because in an 11-week span of time, there are many favorites, as well as many not-so-much. Now that the dust has settled and we are getting back into a routine, it seems a good time to pause and consider that question. What was your favorite?
Thinking about the bests and the worsts will be my topic over several posts. Today I'm thinking about some of the bests.
We saw many beautiful places. We ate some wonderful food. We stayed in a number of very nice hotels. But none of that is really my favorite. My favorite thing about the trip was the people. More specifically, my most favorite thing about this trip was getting to spend time with friends I haven't seen in a very long time. Because we have lived in as many places as we have, we are blessed to have friends in many parts of the country. Unfortunately, we didn't see all of them, although we reminisced as we passed near to where those friends lived. But we were blessed to spend some time with several dear friends as we traveled around.
In Nashville, we enjoyed time with Bill and Jean, and with Tim, Amy, and Eli. In Phoenix, I spent a lovely afternoon with Lisa. We had dinner with Karl and Ava in Missouri, and with Dave and Myra in Illinois, and we ate pancakes at Cracker Barrel in Massachusetts with Danny and Janet. We worshipped and had a lovely after-church visit with Rich and Linda in Illinois, and with Wayne and Linda in Georgia. Those good times with friends are among my favorite memories from this trip.
Time with friends was wonderful. Time with family, which I never get enough of, was even more precious. We spent Labor Day weekend in North Carolina, enjoying time with Brandon, Stephanie, and AJ. And we ended the trip with a much-too-brief time with Brian, Emily, and Christopher.
Reflecting on the trip, time with friends and family is certainly at the top of my list of bests. More bests tomorrow. Then we'll get to the worsts!
Today my focus is on friends.
Friends are one of the greatest blessings God gives to us, and having the grace gift of time with friends from days gone by was certainly a treasure as we traveled around the country. How thankful I am for every moment of the trip, but particularly for those special moments spent with friends, making memories to last until the next time our paths cross!
Friendship is very much in the forefront of my thinking today, as one of my dearest friends is in surgery today, taking the next step in her battle against breast cancer. If you think of it during the day, would you pray for Johanne, for her husband Jeff, for her doctors and all her medical team, for her family, and for all of us who love her so dearly. Many thanks for joining with us in prayer!
"A friend loves at all times." (Proverbs 17:17 ESV)
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
Monday, October 12, 2015
Tinted Moisturizer and Mascara
Despite what you may have thought when you read the title, this is not a post about makeup. Even so, thinking about makeup helps to illustrate the point.
Makeup is a fact of life for many women. Truth be told, most women past 25 or 30 just look better with judicious use of some cosmetics. In the words of a pastor friend of ours from years gone by, a little paint never hurt an old barn!
In spite of that, the older I get, the less I want to be bothered with all that. I need it more, but I want to deal with it less. As a result, on most days, if I'm not planning to go out of the house, I don't go through the whole makeup routine. Those are pretty much tinted moisturizer and mascara days. Maybe a little lip gloss. But not much more. Just enough to get by. Just enough not to scare anybody!
Just enough to get by. There's a lot of that going around. Most days, I have just enough cosmetic products on my face to get by. I hear teachers complaining about students who are capable of so much, but do just enough to get by. In the workplace, many are doing just enough to get by without losing their jobs.
And, sadly, many who call themselves Christian are doing just enough to get by. Certainly becoming a Christian is not about what we do. The Scripture tells us that we must "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ." (Acts 16:31). That's it. It's not about what we do, but about what Jesus has done that is the issue in salvation.
But what about living out our salvation? What about living the Christ-life?
This fall our Life Group has been studying the New Testament Book of Acts as we are seeking to understand how we are to live the Christ-life as we draw nearer and nearer to the return of Christ to this earth. How do we live the Christ-life in a culture that rejects Him? How do we live the Christ-life in this 11th hour?
The early church, as described in Acts 2:42-47, has much to teach us about how we should be living in these days. This group of believers was not satisfied to just get by, and that makes them very different from many believers today, certainly here in the United States.
If you think about it, we here in the United States have much in common with the early church. We are in the minority in our culture, as were they. The early church faced persecution because of their faith, and more and more we are seeing that in our culture as well, as the Christian faith is ever more marginalized in our society. The early church believed that Jesus would return to earth very soon, within their lifetime. While many years have passed since Jesus left this earth and we don't know exactly when He will return, we do know with certainty that He will return because that is what He said He would do. And we also know with certainty that we are closer now than we have ever been to that time. In the words of the Apostle Paul, "salvation is nearer to us than when we first believed." (Romans 13:11b NASB).
That's what we have in common with the early church. Sadly, for many modern-day Christians, that's where the similarities end and the tinted moisturizer and mascara comparisons begin. The early Christians were much more than just enough to get by church members.
Here's what we know about them: "They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." (Acts 2:42 NASB)
Continually. Devoting. Those are very descriptive words. They describe a lifestyle, not an every now and then, just enough to get by, attitude. These early believers were devoted to the apostles' teaching. They listened. They learned. They applied. And what were the apostles teaching? They were teaching what Jesus had taught them! So to bring this into the 20th century, what should we who call ourselves Christian be doing? We should be, as they were, devoted to, as a habit of life, the study of the Scriptures! Not just to occasionally reading some Scripture. Not to occasionally, when it's convenient and it's not raining and there's no ball game that has our attention, showing up for Bible study and worship on Sunday morning. But as a habit of life, if we are following their example, we should be devoted to the study of the Scripture.
They were continually devoting themselves to fellowship and the breaking of bread and to prayer. In other words, they were doing life together. As a habit of life, they were spending time together. Eating meals together. Celebrating what we now refer to as the Lord's Supper. Together. Praying. Together. They routinely spent time together doing these things. As a habit of life. Not just enough to get by. Not just enough that their name wasn't removed from the class roll. Not just occasionally. Not just when it was convenient and they didn't have anything better to do. This was the better!
That's the model we have from the early church of how to "do" church. How to live as a believer in the 11th hour. (Remember that they thought they were in the 11th hour, too!) This is the model the Scripture gives us of believers living in community with one another.
The Gaithers wrote a song some years ago titled The Church Triumphant. The song begins with this line: Let the church be the church.
These early believers in Acts 2 show us how the church is to be the church. They show us what it means to be a community of believers. Not just tinted moisturizer and mascara believers, but believers who, as a habit of life, live as a community.
This is not to say that they lived out in some holy huddle, or commune, on the side of a hill somewhere singing Kum Ba Yah all day. Not at all. They still had life to live and families to raise. They had to make a living and go fishing for the day's meal. But through all that, they lived in community with one another. They did life together. They spent time together. They studied together. They fellowshipped together. They prayed together.
Continually devoting themselves to. As a habit of life. As a priority of life.
"They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching, and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." (Acts 2:42 NASB, emphasis mine)
They were not tinted moisturizer and mascara believers. Neither should we be!
What was the result of that kind devotion?
"Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe, and many wonders and signs were taking place." (Acts 2:43 NASB)
"And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved."
(Acts 2:47b NASB)
If we're missing the sense of awe, perhaps it's because we're also missing that kind of devotion.
That's really the question for us as believers here in 21st century America, isn't it? What are we devoted to?
How would you describe yourself? What would those who know you best say about you? What about those who just see you occasionally? Are you known more as a continually devoted kind of believer? Or are you better described as tinted moisturizer and mascara?
Something to think about.
Makeup is a fact of life for many women. Truth be told, most women past 25 or 30 just look better with judicious use of some cosmetics. In the words of a pastor friend of ours from years gone by, a little paint never hurt an old barn!
In spite of that, the older I get, the less I want to be bothered with all that. I need it more, but I want to deal with it less. As a result, on most days, if I'm not planning to go out of the house, I don't go through the whole makeup routine. Those are pretty much tinted moisturizer and mascara days. Maybe a little lip gloss. But not much more. Just enough to get by. Just enough not to scare anybody!
Just enough to get by. There's a lot of that going around. Most days, I have just enough cosmetic products on my face to get by. I hear teachers complaining about students who are capable of so much, but do just enough to get by. In the workplace, many are doing just enough to get by without losing their jobs.
And, sadly, many who call themselves Christian are doing just enough to get by. Certainly becoming a Christian is not about what we do. The Scripture tells us that we must "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ." (Acts 16:31). That's it. It's not about what we do, but about what Jesus has done that is the issue in salvation.
But what about living out our salvation? What about living the Christ-life?
This fall our Life Group has been studying the New Testament Book of Acts as we are seeking to understand how we are to live the Christ-life as we draw nearer and nearer to the return of Christ to this earth. How do we live the Christ-life in a culture that rejects Him? How do we live the Christ-life in this 11th hour?
The early church, as described in Acts 2:42-47, has much to teach us about how we should be living in these days. This group of believers was not satisfied to just get by, and that makes them very different from many believers today, certainly here in the United States.
If you think about it, we here in the United States have much in common with the early church. We are in the minority in our culture, as were they. The early church faced persecution because of their faith, and more and more we are seeing that in our culture as well, as the Christian faith is ever more marginalized in our society. The early church believed that Jesus would return to earth very soon, within their lifetime. While many years have passed since Jesus left this earth and we don't know exactly when He will return, we do know with certainty that He will return because that is what He said He would do. And we also know with certainty that we are closer now than we have ever been to that time. In the words of the Apostle Paul, "salvation is nearer to us than when we first believed." (Romans 13:11b NASB).
That's what we have in common with the early church. Sadly, for many modern-day Christians, that's where the similarities end and the tinted moisturizer and mascara comparisons begin. The early Christians were much more than just enough to get by church members.
Here's what we know about them: "They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." (Acts 2:42 NASB)
Continually. Devoting. Those are very descriptive words. They describe a lifestyle, not an every now and then, just enough to get by, attitude. These early believers were devoted to the apostles' teaching. They listened. They learned. They applied. And what were the apostles teaching? They were teaching what Jesus had taught them! So to bring this into the 20th century, what should we who call ourselves Christian be doing? We should be, as they were, devoted to, as a habit of life, the study of the Scriptures! Not just to occasionally reading some Scripture. Not to occasionally, when it's convenient and it's not raining and there's no ball game that has our attention, showing up for Bible study and worship on Sunday morning. But as a habit of life, if we are following their example, we should be devoted to the study of the Scripture.
They were continually devoting themselves to fellowship and the breaking of bread and to prayer. In other words, they were doing life together. As a habit of life, they were spending time together. Eating meals together. Celebrating what we now refer to as the Lord's Supper. Together. Praying. Together. They routinely spent time together doing these things. As a habit of life. Not just enough to get by. Not just enough that their name wasn't removed from the class roll. Not just occasionally. Not just when it was convenient and they didn't have anything better to do. This was the better!
That's the model we have from the early church of how to "do" church. How to live as a believer in the 11th hour. (Remember that they thought they were in the 11th hour, too!) This is the model the Scripture gives us of believers living in community with one another.
The Gaithers wrote a song some years ago titled The Church Triumphant. The song begins with this line: Let the church be the church.
These early believers in Acts 2 show us how the church is to be the church. They show us what it means to be a community of believers. Not just tinted moisturizer and mascara believers, but believers who, as a habit of life, live as a community.
This is not to say that they lived out in some holy huddle, or commune, on the side of a hill somewhere singing Kum Ba Yah all day. Not at all. They still had life to live and families to raise. They had to make a living and go fishing for the day's meal. But through all that, they lived in community with one another. They did life together. They spent time together. They studied together. They fellowshipped together. They prayed together.
Continually devoting themselves to. As a habit of life. As a priority of life.
"They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching, and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." (Acts 2:42 NASB, emphasis mine)
They were not tinted moisturizer and mascara believers. Neither should we be!
What was the result of that kind devotion?
"Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe, and many wonders and signs were taking place." (Acts 2:43 NASB)
"And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved."
(Acts 2:47b NASB)
If we're missing the sense of awe, perhaps it's because we're also missing that kind of devotion.
That's really the question for us as believers here in 21st century America, isn't it? What are we devoted to?
How would you describe yourself? What would those who know you best say about you? What about those who just see you occasionally? Are you known more as a continually devoted kind of believer? Or are you better described as tinted moisturizer and mascara?
Something to think about.
Friday, October 9, 2015
Trim and Healthy: A Book Review
Trim and healthy. If we're honest, isn't that what we would all say we would like to be. But there are so many "experts" out there with opinions about how that is to be accomplished. Who are we supposed to listen to anyway? The low fat people? Or the low carb people? Or the no-red-meat people? What's a person to do? What is the right approach to trim and healthy?
Because of all the conflicting information that abounds, I was intrigued when I came across trim healthy mama plan: the easy-does-it approach to vibrant health and a slim waistline by Pearl Barrett and Serene Allison.
"Food freedom! Are you ready for it?" So begins the introduction to trim healthy mama plan. This is not a fad diet, but rather a guide to a healthy eating lifestyle.
This book teaches you the basics of the trim healthy mama plan and provides some simple menu plans as guides to help you get started on the path to healthy eating. And it does all that in an easy to read and understand way.
What the book does not provide is recipes to accompany this plan. For that, you need a second book.
The authors of this book are sisters. It is my understanding that they developed this eating plan several years ago and first published it in a much larger book that combined the information now contained in trim healthy mama plan, along with a collection of recipes. They have now separated the original book into two more manageable parts; this book contains information about the plan, and there is a separate cookbook which contains recipes to accompany the plan.
trim healthy mama plan is a great book to answer the what do I eat and when and why questions that we so often have when we're trying to be trim and healthy. I'm not sure the accompanying cookbook is an absolute necessity in order to follow this plan, but it would probably be helpful.
I am not currently following the plan, but after having read this book, I may give it a try. What these sisters have outlined here is not rules and lists and points to count, but rather realistic guidelines that can be adapted to your own personal situation. This is a plan that works with everyday, inexpensive food from a regular grocery store. That, I believe, is the real appeal of the plan and why so many people are giving it a try.
If you have been looking for a path to healthy living that is easy to follow, this book is certainly worth reading as you are making your decision.
You can find more information here: http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/248669/trim-healthy-mama-plan-by-pearl-barrett-and-serene-allison/
Or you can follow the sisters on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TrimHealthyMama
I received a free copy of this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for my honest review.
Because of all the conflicting information that abounds, I was intrigued when I came across trim healthy mama plan: the easy-does-it approach to vibrant health and a slim waistline by Pearl Barrett and Serene Allison.
"Food freedom! Are you ready for it?" So begins the introduction to trim healthy mama plan. This is not a fad diet, but rather a guide to a healthy eating lifestyle.
This book teaches you the basics of the trim healthy mama plan and provides some simple menu plans as guides to help you get started on the path to healthy eating. And it does all that in an easy to read and understand way.
What the book does not provide is recipes to accompany this plan. For that, you need a second book.
The authors of this book are sisters. It is my understanding that they developed this eating plan several years ago and first published it in a much larger book that combined the information now contained in trim healthy mama plan, along with a collection of recipes. They have now separated the original book into two more manageable parts; this book contains information about the plan, and there is a separate cookbook which contains recipes to accompany the plan.
trim healthy mama plan is a great book to answer the what do I eat and when and why questions that we so often have when we're trying to be trim and healthy. I'm not sure the accompanying cookbook is an absolute necessity in order to follow this plan, but it would probably be helpful.
I am not currently following the plan, but after having read this book, I may give it a try. What these sisters have outlined here is not rules and lists and points to count, but rather realistic guidelines that can be adapted to your own personal situation. This is a plan that works with everyday, inexpensive food from a regular grocery store. That, I believe, is the real appeal of the plan and why so many people are giving it a try.
If you have been looking for a path to healthy living that is easy to follow, this book is certainly worth reading as you are making your decision.
You can find more information here: http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/248669/trim-healthy-mama-plan-by-pearl-barrett-and-serene-allison/
Or you can follow the sisters on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TrimHealthyMama
I received a free copy of this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for my honest review.
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
A Song of Thanksgiving
"Let all things now living a song of thanksgiving
To God the Creator triumphantly raise,
Who fashioned and made us, protected and stayed us,
Who guideth us on to the end of our days.
His banners are o'er us, His light goes before us,
A pillar of fire shining forth in the night,
'Til shadows have vanished and darkness is banished,
As forward we travel from light into light.
His law He enforces, the stars in their courses,
The sun in His orbit, obediently shine.
The hills and the mountains, the rivers and fountains,
The deeps of the ocean proclaim Him Divine.
We too should be voicing our love and rejoicing,
With glad adoration a song let us raise,
'Til all things now living unite in thanksgiving
To God in the highest, hosanna and praise!
-Katherine K. Davis
Those are the words to a hymn titled "Let All Things Now Living", written by Katherine K. Davis and typically sung to a traditional Welsh melody. It's one of those hymns we don't sing in church any more, which makes me a bit sad. And before you get jump to a wrong conclusion, that was not an anti-new-music statement. I'm not anti-new-music as much as I am anti-ignoring older music! Much of what we hear and sing in our churches these days that would be classified as "new" or "contemporary" is music that I like very much. But I don't like all of it. Not all of it is good. Some of it is just new. Some of it I don't like. It's a personal-preference-thing. But that isn't my point.
I was thinking about this song this morning. Not because we have sung it recently; we haven't. We sing some wonderful music in our church.......new songs, old songs, the great hymns of our faith. This particular hymn hasn't been sung recently; in fact, I can't even remember the last time I sang this hymn in a church setting! Rather, it has been called up from deep in the recesses of my memory. It's a catchy tune, but it's the text that has my attention.
Perhaps it's because I'm not as young as I used to be! Perhaps it's because of the flooding here in my home state. Or perhaps there is some other reason. In any event, I am becoming more and more aware of how much I take for granted. How often I forget to say "thank you". It's not that I'm ungrateful. Forgetful, yes. A little scatter-brained sometimes. Distracted. But not ungrateful.
Today is a perfect day for a "Song of Thanksgiving"! On this beautiful morning, as the sun peeks through the trees behind my house, I have so many reasons for thanksgiving. Certainly the beauty of the world around me is one of those reasons. This is a beautiful morning, in a beautiful season of the year. I love this season of the year, this season when we have so many scenes like this one to look forward to:
But there are many, many reasons for thanksgiving this morning beyond just the beauty of the season. Even as I see photo after photo of the devastation caused by flooding here in South Carolina, I am also seeing photo after photo of neighbors helping each other. Of strangers helping strangers. Of donations of water and food and supplies. Of people opening their homes to those in need. It makes me proud to be a South Carolinian. Proud, and so thankful to call South Carolina home. My heart is overwhelmed with thanksgiving for all the ways people are reaching out to help those in need.
In addition to all that, I'm thankful for dear friends. For the best husband ever! For my family. For my church family. For my pastor. For our home. For my health.
And I am so very thankful for the privilege of prayer. Thankful that God hears and answers. Thankful for all those times when I utter a prayer with a very specific request, and within just a few minutes, I have my answer! And I am also thankful for all the times when the answer doesn't come as quickly, because it is in those times I learn about waiting and trusting and depending on the Lord.
I am beyond grateful for a Sovereign Lord. One who knows me best and loves me most. One who has all things under control.
And so to Him today I am singing my song of thanksgiving!
"My heart overflows with a good theme." (Psalm 45:1 NASB)
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Thinking About Flood Gates
As the rain continued to fall on Sunday and as the water level in Lake Murray rose above flood stage, the decision was made to open the flood gates.
Yesterday afternoon the sun began to shine here in Spartanburg, for the first time in several days. As I was giving thanks for the sun, I was also giving thanks for so many other things as well. That we were safe here in our home during the storm. That we had no damage. That family members in Columbia, where things were far worse than here, were safe during the storm.
I was giving thanks for our safety, but also grieving for those around our state who have lost so much. Heartbroken over the loss of life, and over the damage to my beautiful state. Praying for those without power and without drinking water. Praying for those whose homes are filled with water.
As I continue to see the pictures of the devastation around the state, I am weeping. And praying. Praying for all who are suffering. Praying for first responders and for linemen and for all who are out there helping those in need. Praying for our Governor and for all the decisions she must make.
In the midst of all that, my thoughts keep returning to those flood gates. And I am reminded of a line from an old hymn. It's one of those old hymns we don't sing very much any more.
Yesterday afternoon the sun began to shine here in Spartanburg, for the first time in several days. As I was giving thanks for the sun, I was also giving thanks for so many other things as well. That we were safe here in our home during the storm. That we had no damage. That family members in Columbia, where things were far worse than here, were safe during the storm.
I was giving thanks for our safety, but also grieving for those around our state who have lost so much. Heartbroken over the loss of life, and over the damage to my beautiful state. Praying for those without power and without drinking water. Praying for those whose homes are filled with water.
As I continue to see the pictures of the devastation around the state, I am weeping. And praying. Praying for all who are suffering. Praying for first responders and for linemen and for all who are out there helping those in need. Praying for our Governor and for all the decisions she must make.
In the midst of all that, my thoughts keep returning to those flood gates. And I am reminded of a line from an old hymn. It's one of those old hymns we don't sing very much any more.
Lord, send the old-time power, the Pentecostal power!
Thy floodgates of blessing on us throw open wide!
(from "Pentecostal Power" by Charles H. Gabriel)
Floodgates of blessing!
How we need those floodgates of blessing today! In our communities. In South Carolina. In the United States of America.
Oh, that we who are God's people would cry out to Him on behalf of our families and our communities and our nation for those floodgates to be opened.
Not because we deserve it, because we don't.
But because of His great mercy.
Lord, have mercy on us. We are a sinful people. We have turned our back on you. Forgive us. Forgive our sin. Heal our land. Have mercy on us, we pray.
"If my people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14 NASB)
Monday, October 5, 2015
Under Water
In recent years, the phrase under water has come to mean owing more on your home mortgage than your home is now worth. This weekend, here in South Carolina, we have gone back to a more literal interpretation of that phrase. Much of my beloved home state is, quite literally, under water.
This photo, which was making the rounds on Facebook yesterday, pretty much sums it up:
Bridges have washed away. Creeks and ponds have overflowed their boundaries. Neighborhoods have been evacuated. The ground has washed out from under the roadbed, leaving roads collapsing. The flood gates at Lake Murray were opened yesterday. For you non-South Carolinians, Lake Murray is a large, man-made lake in the center of our state, with more than three hundred miles of shoreline, held in place by an earthen dam. Right now, that lake, like so many other lakes and ponds and rivers and streams, has too much water in it. There's just too much water everywhere in South Carolina right now.
We South Carolinians are a pretty resilient people. We've been through a lot since the first English settlers came ashore in 1670. We will survive this and we will thrive again. But right now we are hurting.
Times like these provide great opportunities. Opportunities for the church to be the church. To reach out and help those who are hurting. Those whose homes are under water and who have no place to sleep. Those who are without electricity and drinking water. Those who can't get home because roads are closed or washed away.
Those of us who are nearby and who are fortunate enough not to be in such dire straits have an opportunity today to reach out and help those in need.
All of us, whether near or far away, can pray.
May we be faithful to do that today. Pray for those who have lost their homes. For those who have lost family members. For those without power and water. For those who are frightened.
Look for an opportunity today to be a blessing to someone.
And pray.
This photo, which was making the rounds on Facebook yesterday, pretty much sums it up:
Bridges have washed away. Creeks and ponds have overflowed their boundaries. Neighborhoods have been evacuated. The ground has washed out from under the roadbed, leaving roads collapsing. The flood gates at Lake Murray were opened yesterday. For you non-South Carolinians, Lake Murray is a large, man-made lake in the center of our state, with more than three hundred miles of shoreline, held in place by an earthen dam. Right now, that lake, like so many other lakes and ponds and rivers and streams, has too much water in it. There's just too much water everywhere in South Carolina right now.
We South Carolinians are a pretty resilient people. We've been through a lot since the first English settlers came ashore in 1670. We will survive this and we will thrive again. But right now we are hurting.
Times like these provide great opportunities. Opportunities for the church to be the church. To reach out and help those who are hurting. Those whose homes are under water and who have no place to sleep. Those who are without electricity and drinking water. Those who can't get home because roads are closed or washed away.
Those of us who are nearby and who are fortunate enough not to be in such dire straits have an opportunity today to reach out and help those in need.
All of us, whether near or far away, can pray.
May we be faithful to do that today. Pray for those who have lost their homes. For those who have lost family members. For those without power and water. For those who are frightened.
Look for an opportunity today to be a blessing to someone.
And pray.
Thursday, October 1, 2015
If They Could See Us Now
Grandmother Neil, my mother's mother, was one of the people I admired most in this life. And if I were to list the people who had the most influence on my life, she would be very near the top of that list. Today is the anniversary of her passing into eternity, into the presence of the Lord she loved so much and served so well while here on earth.
I don't always note the anniversary of her passing, but somehow today it is very present in my mind and heart. Perhaps it's the passing of my DIL's grandmother last week that has me remembering my own grandmother. Perhaps it's that Al's mom, my sons' grandmother, has been having a rough week. Or perhaps it's something else. Whatever the reason, today I'm remembering Grandmother Neil. Stern, yet gentle. Strong-willed. Determined. Those are adjectives that come to mind when I think of her. Most of all, I think of her as a Godly woman. A woman who did not compromise when it came to matters of faith. A woman who knew the Scriptures well. A woman who didn't just talk the talk, but walked the walk.
Grandmother had a favorite hymn. She was always singing or humming or whistling that hymn throughout the day.
I don't always note the anniversary of her passing, but somehow today it is very present in my mind and heart. Perhaps it's the passing of my DIL's grandmother last week that has me remembering my own grandmother. Perhaps it's that Al's mom, my sons' grandmother, has been having a rough week. Or perhaps it's something else. Whatever the reason, today I'm remembering Grandmother Neil. Stern, yet gentle. Strong-willed. Determined. Those are adjectives that come to mind when I think of her. Most of all, I think of her as a Godly woman. A woman who did not compromise when it came to matters of faith. A woman who knew the Scriptures well. A woman who didn't just talk the talk, but walked the walk.
Grandmother had a favorite hymn. She was always singing or humming or whistling that hymn throughout the day.
"Thou, my everlasting portion, more than friend or life to me;
All along my pilgrim journey, Savior, let me walk with Thee."
(words by Fanny J. Crosby)
Today marks the anniversary of the day Grandmother Neil left this life to walk forever in eternity with her Savior and Lord.
This week marks the passing of another great saint, George Whitfield. I was reminded by an e-mail yesterday of the anniversary of Whitfield's passing on September 30, 1770. If Whitfield is not someone you have thought about much lately, let me refresh your memory. Whitfield was one of the best-known preachers in England, where he was born, and in North America, during the 18th century. Whitfield left England to come to America, where he preached a series of revivals that were a part of what we have come to know as the Great Awakening.
Whitfield said, "God forbid that I should travel with anybody a quarter of an hour without speaking of Christ to them."
Whitfield said, "As Christ was born of the Virgin's womb, so must He be spiritually formed in our hearts. As He died for sin, so must we die to sin. And as He rose again from the dead, so must we also rise to a divine life."
Nearly 250 years have passed since Whitfield left this world. If he could see what we have become, I wonder what he would think.
More than 40 years have passed since Grandmother Neil left this world. If she could see what we have become, I wonder what she would think.
I don't think either of them would be pleased. George Whitfield and Grandmother Neil are two examples of people with a hunger and thirst for the things of God. That hunger and thirst is missing in our world today, even among those who call themselves Christian.
How far we have fallen since the days of George Whitfield. Even since the days of Grandmother Neil.
Oh, that once again we might live in such pure devotion to Christ! That I might live in such pure devotion to Christ!
Send a revival, O Christ, my Lord,
Let it go over the land and sea.
Send it according to Thy dear Word,
And let it begin in me.
(-B.B. McKinney)
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