Footprints!

Footprints

“I come to the garden alone,
while the dew is still on the roses,
and the voce I hear falling on my ear,
the son of God discloses.

and he walks with me,
and he talks with me,
and he tells me I am his own,
and the joy we share as we tarry there,
none other has ever known."
(In the Garden, C. Austin Miles)
(Methodist Hymnal No. 314)

        The overwhelming support that we have as people of faith is certainly wonderful and one of the greatest advantages of Christianity. Often, as an A type personality, I awake before June and go jogging (now walking!) at sunrise, "...when the dew is still on the roses...”. The sound of mourning doves and early robins is the dominant sound rather than traffic or other social activity related noise. Often I find myself humming "In the Garden".
        Another time when it comes to mind is before a tough meeting or event. Whether a business meeting, neighborhood meeting or a hospital visit, it is great to know that you are never alone if you let Him join you.
        Many of you often see me with a lapel pin that is a pair of feet. They are from "Foot prints in the sand".  They are to invite conversation regarding the concept of walking with Christ every day. It is always an interesting conversation.
        We are blessed.
Thought for Today: This week let us simply remember that we are never alone. Let us enjoy His presence as we walk through our lives.
Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father, we are certainly glad that you are here for support. Often the world around us is confusing and it is difficult to understand your wishes. However, we give thanks for the roll that you play in our everyday lives and the help you give you give our friends and families.
Amen 

Spring!

Spring

"In the bulb there is a flower,
in the seed an apple tree;
in co-coons a hidden promise:
butterflies will soon be free!

In the cold and snow of winter
there's a spring that waits to be,
unrevealed until its season,
something God alone can see."
(Hymn of Promise, Verse 1, Natalie Sleeth, 1986)

        This is s glorious time of the year. The northern hemisphere goes into the transition to summer. It is a time when the resolutions from New Year’s Day are long since successful or forgotten. A time of vacation planning, garden planting and the anticipation of the beauty of the warm season. A time of hope led by the visible evidence of God's presence around us.

        This is a time for reflection and review of our dark side. A review of the negative forces in our lives. This is spring and we need to recover the "...hidden promise..." in our personal lives "... that God alone can see." Through our faith and belief, our Lord will share with us the pleasures of life.

Thought for Today: It is spring. Let us take special notice of its wonders. Smell the flowers and enjoy the showers. Let us share these positive feelings with others and encourage positive feelings around us.

Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father we pray for an end to senseless killing and the guidance to understand this violent world that surrounds us. There seems to be a dominant hate factor that is not created by Godly forces. There needs to be more prayer and less negative logic.  We pray that the world’s religions may see you as one God. We pray that somehow through your divine guidance, killing, hate and violence may come to an end.

Joy

Joy

“The Lord is my strength and my shield. My heart trusts in him and I am helped.

My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song."

(Psalm 28:7)

    Is there joy in our lives? Let us face it, most of us have a lot more joy (positives) than negatives. Our family, friends and associates are sources of great joy. It is spring, the grass is green; the trees are budding with leaves and spring flowers are showing their colors. It is easy to see this kind of joy.

    Many people today have a problem seeing the joys in their lives. Several of my good friends have recently lost their jobs and another has a fatal illness. There are always two sides to our lives. When we are down, it is important to remember the Lord and his place in our lives. As Paul said to the Romans (15:13); "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

    Yes, in our lives there are physical and emotional joys. Our surroundings and life styles generate them. The real joy, however, comes through our Christian beliefs. It is this belief that gives us the "strength" and "shield" mentioned in Psalm 28:7.

Thought for Today: Let us keep joy at the forefront of our thoughts. When challenged with life, let's use our shield - the Lord.

Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father, many of our friends are fighting battles. Illness, unemployment, unwanted career changes and many others. We pray for them to understand your strength and love. We pray that they may find the joy that is only available through trust in you.

Amen

For today!

Personal Prayer

Personal Prayer

“Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”

(Romans 14:19)

         As we watch the news, read our newspapers and study life around us and throughout the world, we see a lot of stress and confusion. The media presents us with more negatives than positives. We might wonder how to overcome these challenges and bring peace to the world.

         We need to consider what our contribution to peace will be. Certainly we cannot go out tomorrow and solve the world’s problems and create “World Peace”. However, each of us can start every day with the goal to be at peace and stay that way. Stay within ourselves through prayer to maintain our own internal peace.

         Our contribution to the world can and will start within us. We know that the Lord is with us, we need to let Him in and others see the results. As Paul stated to the Romans,

“We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.

Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.”

(Romans 15:1 & 2).

Thought for Today: There is an old expression that suggests aggressive reactions: “When the going gets tough, the tough get going”. That is always an option. Today for us let’s think about this: “When our going gets tough, let’s start to pray and be at peace”. Let’s all demonstrate a better way!

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father today we pray for gentile solutions to our problems. We pay that when things get tough we may peacefully resolve the issues the way Jesus did.

Amen

Also Ran!

Also Ran!

Then the LORD said to Joshua,

“Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

(Joshua 8 vs.1) 

            Being an also ran is a way of life. We rarely finish first. As many of you know I detest the sports attitude that “Winning isn’t everything it is the only thing.” Here are some examples: My friend Pat McNamara qualified in four different Olympics and did not win a medal; my brother Wayne swam for years and was a national top ten in four events but never had a national championship; Ted Williams and Carl Yastrzemski played years for the Red Sox and never received a world series ring; and the list goes on! None of the above is a loser and all were or are proud of their accomplishments.

                       Clint Purvis, the team chaplain for Florida State University’s football team under Bobby Bowden put it like this after a tough loss to Miami, “There is a huge difference between getting beat in a game and being a loser.” Clint reminded the team of the characteristics of being a winner: 

1.      A winner still remembers that God never forsakes his own.

2.      A winner must remember that it is always painful and costly to claim victory again.

3.      A winner will always remember the source of all his blessings.

(from Bobby Bowden’s Called to Coach, Howard Books, 2010” 

            We rarely are number one but since God is always with us, we are always winners. 

Thought for Today: Today we will have battles we do not expect. With God’s help, let us be winners no matter which way the battle turns out! 

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord and Father, today we thank you for being with us at all times in every place. We thank you because when you are along we will be winners.

Amen

Examples!

Examples

“Who is wise and understanding among you?
Let him show it by his good life,
by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts,
do not boast about it or deny the truth.
Such wisdom does not come down from heaven
but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil.
For where you have envy and selfish ambition,
there you find disorder and every evil practice."
(James 3:13-16)

        One of my recurring themes is that we are all ministers of the Gospel. Within our individual congregations we hire ordained ministers to lead and teach us as we move forward on our spiritual journeys. Sometimes we catch ourselves in the Sunday only mode.
        A very dear friend of June's and mine is in spiritual crises. For whatever reason faith has left and bouts of depression have occurred. It is probably not coincidental. For Christians, there is a strong tie between our faith and our inner peace. When our faith is doubtful we take control of things. We forget to "Let go and let God".

        As Christians, we need to demonstrate our inner peace to others. Show our caring spirits and our love. Not on Sunday but every day in every activity. Our ministry needs to be subtle, persistent and very public. When we function in a very Christian and public way, people in doubt will come to us.

Thought for Today: Today let us demonstrate our inner peace to all we meet. Let us look for opportunity to talk about our tranquility and our faith. Let us offer to share with others.

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord, there are many great events that are masked by tragedy. Today we pray that somehow we as Christians may find a way to contribute. That we may have our prayers answered with a lasting miracle. We all need an end to hate and hateful decisions; we pray for world peace.

Amen