Month: May 2017

“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!!