Sunday, November 22, 2009

TIME FLIES !

Arnie came by way after dark the other night!
Long time-no see , young man.
Thinking back on when we met : years ago. I was still young enough to mow the lawns, prune the shrubs, plant and feed the roses. Loved it!
Arnie was just barely 10 years old then. He lived in the neighborhood, so often rode his bike past our home. He often looked angry...and very alone. Three boys about his age were neighborhood
little bullies and troubled many of the seniors . They threw rocks through windows, etc.
Arnie was a target for them. I could tell he was afraid , even though he tried to cover it by very harsh words and pent up anger.
One summer's day as I knelt in the far corner next to the front fence, planting some more lavender, brown, peach colored IRIS plants...Arnie rode up to the fence and started talking . He was so angry! He called the bully-boys really bad names . He even wished they would die. I asked him a few questions about his school vacation , his teen sister, etc. and he slowly calmed down. Then I asked him, "Arnie, wouldn't it be so much better to be the neighborhood HERO..rather than wanting to be so strong you can hurt those three boys?"
With great disbelief he said " How? That could never happen!"
In the next hour I told Arnie how Jesus had saved my life when I was younger, and how HE could make a neighborhood hero out of him. Arnie was very attentive, yet naturally skeptic.
I gave him cartoon type Christ centered lil' booklets from my apron pocket, and Arnie went away. I prayed , then went back to my work.
Later as I was inside preparing supper, Arnie knocked on the door , something he had never done before...never even entering the yard fence.
With reddened eyes and a soft voice , he said, " I read both those books...and I liked them" .
when asked if he prayed the little prayers at the end of the booklets, Arnie said, "Yes! I did...and
I feel different!"
Oh! I hugged that 10 year old boy and told him many things about Jesus.
Time proved that Arnie met Jesus that day! For the next years he rode his bike with a calm face, greeting and stopping to talk to the old ones in the area. He often stopped by to tell us of his schoolmates making fun of him...then later beginning to believe as they observed the changed Arnie!
When he outgrew that bike, he would walk by. Stopping to tell us of his (now) high school friends.
Of his attending regularly a Christian Young People's group meetings , and all the community helps they were doing together.
He stopped by when he graduated High school. He came again when he was attending his second year at Community college. His family moved , so much time would pass between visits.
The last one had been when he wanted to show us his big and beautiful Pickup truck!
Every time I saw him over the years, at our partings I would ask him, "Are you still taking Jesus with you , Arnie?" He always grinned and said, "Yes! OH, yes."
Then a long time passed and no sight of him...until the other night, way after dark, a knock on the door. As Papa opened it and I heard the voice , I said , "ARNIE! Where have you been , Son!" He said, "on the road", then continued to tell us that he drives big rigs cross country ..and he LOVES IT! He told about what he sees in New York...and how he enjoyed the state of Arkansas, etc. He was so proud and happy that it did our old hearts good . When he had to leave
I asked him , "Arnie , is Jesus still riding with you?" He grinned, a gentle grin, and said, "Yes! HE IS!" And then this tall man with his truck driver's hat and jacket waved and walked into the darkness. A real Neighborhood Hero.
Did I forget to say that Arnie is mildly Autistic?

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

I HAVE........

Have you....seen palm trees bowed, crowns to the sand,... before the rage of hurricane winds...
pliant and humbled, even to the edge of destruction...
yet their roots , driven so deeply by other storms, other times...
grip solid rock beyond the sand , anchored ...
and as the furious devastation exhausts itself at last...
waters recede...tidal waves lie down.


THE FAITH THAT CAN"T BE SHAKEN, IS THE FAITH THAT HAS BEEN SHAKEN.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

A WINDY DAY

. Where have my words gone? They used to, many times, flow out of my pen.
These days I can not speak out ...nor write...the words that are still on my human "hard drive". I falter ...mid-sentence.
. Lord, I have loved words all the days of my life...must I lose them in these last miles?
. God have mercy.
. Let my words not
skitter away
like dry leaves on a
windy day.......
.... and, Lord, even though I may never understand all the roads You have destined
us to follow....I KNOW ...that You know our end from the beginning,
and that Your Grace enfolds us every step of the Way. Amen

Thursday, October 15, 2009

....AND EVEN NOW....

JIMMY
What would I do without him?
When I feel as if I'm about to be pushed over the cliff,
he always seems to step between me and the edge and he
nudges me back to the safe ground.
I think he'd say I do the same for him,
though I never see it as such at the time.
(from "MARY's JOURNAL")

Have started reading the life story of Oswald Chambers ( we all know him best by his little book "MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST"...read all over the world , in as many languages, second only to God's Bible.)
He died so young. Never knew that his written words were destined by God to
inspire and encourage (and sometimes reveal hidden sins) to generations of God seeking folk.
Where do people like him, like Mother Theresa,like the Catholic priest who lived and died ministering to lepers( all outcasts on a remote island), ... like present day Heidi and Roland Baker ......where do they come from (God , of course).
What requisite to be one to whom the LORD IS their ALL IN ALL?
Can it be BROKENESS ? Not for a season..but forever?
I wonder. I want. I need.

PS. my sweet Girl is going to teach me how to edit and improve what i write here..when she gets time to : )

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

OLD STUFF

A stormy day.
What to do? this thought led to a box, long stored in the garage loft...marked "mom's treasures".
Lift it down carefully.
Later ..spread across the shiny wood floor ..little piles of preciousness.
Hours of reading, piece by piece. Some are yellowed by age.
Tiny handprints, colorful hearts, lots of smiley faces , adorning so many declarations of baby love flowing from pure little hearts
Sweet healing balm for tired old minds.
Three...no, four generations of familial love wove warm "Snuggies" and wrapped us as............the storm raged on.
MOMS, KEEP IT ALL! Each paper , every poem, special letters , all cutouts.... keep
it all. One day your blanket of warmth will embrace you as you open your old trunks and start reliving it all. What a blessing.

Monday, October 12, 2009

Tenacious Love

If You, O Lord, kept a record of sins,
O Lord, who could stand?
BUT..with You there is forgiveness;
And that's why You are worshiped. PS. 130

TENACIOUS! NEVER GIVE UP!
never, never, never give up!
The woman in the Bible came back...again, again, again!
God touched her...NEVER GIVE UP!

What does such LOVE look like ?.....in my life?
It's not just sweet babbling.
I like it easy...then this "Endurance and Patience" thing comes .
What will I carry for the Master?
we're the BODY..and we get to "DO STUFF" : )
Yes, HIS Body. How necessary every son and daughter of God is...
Let's run to the alter ..and die!
Then lets go out in the boat again, with HIM.
Take us out again for the Glory of God (this time).
Seasick? HOLY, HOLY..then barf! But GO!
THE GOSPEL LOOKS LIKE SOMETHING...not just babble! You don't stop when you puke.
Wipe your mouth and position yourself to catch the wind in your sails.

TENACIOUS LOVE...ENDURING FAITH!

The gist of this message struck my heart to it's knees the other day.
Let's run to the alter ...and die.

Thursday, October 8, 2009

WORLD'S MEANEST MOTHER

She recalled the painful years when she was growing up.
"I had the meanest mother in the world, " this ananymous person wrote . " while other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs, and toast. When others had coke and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich , as you can guess, my dinner was different from other kids!
"My mother insisted on knowing where we were at all times. You'd think we were on a chain gang.She had to know who our friends were and what we were doing. She insisted that if we said we'd be gone for one hour, that we would be gone one hour or less."
"I am ashamed to admit it, but she actually had the nerve to break the Child Labor Law. She made us work! We had to wash all the dishes, make beds, learn to cook, and all sorts of cruel things. I believe she laid awake nights thinking up mean things to do to us."
" She always insisted on us telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. By the time we were tennagers she was much wiser, and our life became even more unbearable."
" None of this tooting the horn of a car for us to come running, she embarrassed us no end by making our dates and friends come to the door to get us. I forgot to mention, while my friends were dating at the mature age of 12 or 13 , my old-fashioned mother refused to let me date until I was 15 or 16."
" My mother was a complete failure as a mother. None of us has ever been arrested, or beaten a mate. My brother served his time in the service of his country. And whom do we blame for this terrible way we turned out? You're right, our Mean Mother !"
" look at all the things we missed. We never got to take part in a riot, burn draft cards , and a million and one things that our friends did . She made us grow up into God-fearing , educated, honest adults."
" Using this as a background, I am trying to raise my children. I stand a little taller and I am filled with pride when my children call me Mean. You see, I thank God He gave me the meanest mother in the world."

From this , I would say the country doesn't need a 5-cent cigar; it needs more "Mean Mothers......and Dads."
Our Daughter is such a one : )

Sunday, October 4, 2009

CARRY ON! And ON! And ON!

If you haven't been through adversity, where HAVE you been!

This just in: It is reported that the following people had just 24 hours every day, divided into 24 equal segments of 60 minutes each: Jesus, Mozart, Ghandi, Joseph Smith, Michelangelo, Abraham Lincoln, Moses, and .....well, you get the idea.

One seventh of your life is spent on Mondays....but..one-seventh is spent on Fridays , too!
So , let's be happy and carry on...and on...and... : )