Month: August 2017

“The loving kindness of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him; who keep His commandments.”  Psalm 103:17-18

A friend was telling us a story of two men-one, his dad; the other, his uncle. When he was a boy, his uncle would always ride around the block looking for a parking meter with time left on it.  His dad, in contrast, would always find an empty meter, park, and when he left would fill it up for the next person.  His uncle lived on borrowed time, while his dad paid the price for someone else!

In the movie, Going in Style, three retirees who have lost their pension begin to count up how many years they have left on earth.  They do this because they plan to rob a bank and “borrow” the amount of cash they feel they are due!  They don’t want to take too much, but they don’t want to have to rob the bank again if they take too little!  They were “borrowing” from the bank what they thought was owed them.  When I think about it, all of us are living on borrowed time, and we really are not promised or owed anything other than today.  We can’t count up how much we might need to live because we don’t know.

This past Sunday, Randy and I returned to Bowdon First United Methodist for homecoming.  It was like turning back the clock for us.  As I looked around at the pews, I could visualize where everyone sat on Sunday morning when we served there.  Now there are different faces in some of the pews where friends sat.  Some of those faces are of their children, grandchildren, even great grandchildren.

These folks who were missing are like the dad in the story above.  They filled empty meters for those who would come after them – they paid the price for someone else!  This is how the kingdom of God advances.  We live for Jesus the time we are given and don’t worry about the time we have left.

“I will thank God for the day and the moment I have.”  Jim Valvano

“Go placidly amid the noise and haste and remember what peace can be found in silence.”  The Desirata

I like to start my day on my back porch when the weather permits.  When I first begin my devotional time, it is usually silent except for the hum of the neighbor’s air conditioner.  Slowly, the noise of the day begins to creep in – first a dog barking, then a car going by, next a blower, and pretty soon noise has overtaken the silence.  This time every day is set aside for solitude, but the world and life happen to interrupt.

Over the years, I have learned the difference between silence and solitude. Silence is defined as “the absence of sound” while solitude is defined as “being alone.”  Silence demands solitude.  As we wait quietly before God, the spiritual ear becomes trained to hear His voice.

In our world today, nobody seems to enjoy silence.  The television is on even when no one is in the room, cell phones interrupt our quiet times constantly, Alexa is ready to talk first thing in the morning, exercise classes blare music to pump you up, car trips are filled with audio books, and stores play music continuously.

This week the buzz was all about the solar eclipse, and even though it wasn’t as total as I had expected, it was still incredible.  The strange thing was as we sat in our yard awaiting the eclipse, there was an unusual and comforting silence.  No one was driving, walking, talking, and there were only the birds singing their night time song.  We watched in silence as the reflection of the eclipse danced around the shadows revealing the crescents of the eclipse.  God speaks in silence, and Monday He assured me that He is still there and still in control.  I take a lot of comfort in that silent assurance.

Remember,  “silence can never be misquoted”.  selected

“Give thanks to the Lord for He is good; His love endures forever.”   Psalm 107:1

I was shopping in Trader Joe’s the other day, and as I passed the food sampling station, the man behind the counter reminded of a life lesson.  A little boy came running up to the counter and said, “Give me some.”  The man immediately moved back the sample he was holding out and said, “What’s the magic word?”  The little boy was visibly perplexed and said, “I don’t know, just give me some.”  “No,” said the man, “not until you give me the magic word, and the word is ‘please’.”  The little boy said, “Well, ok, ‘please'”.  As the gentleman handed him the sample, he said, “Now, you need to say ‘thank you'”. “OK, thank you,” said the little boy as he took the sample,” but I need one for my brother, so ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ for him too.”

The first thing I thought as he ran away was, “Where is his Mom and why has she never taught him his manners?”  The second thought I had was how easy it is to say the words but not really understand or attach meaning to the words.  I grew up saying the magic words- please, thank you, yes m’am, no sir – and I say them out of habit.  We were taught our manners from day one, and our parents would be embarrassed if we didn’t use them.

One of my pet peeves is asking a child a question and having him or her respond with “what” or answering my question with “yeah” or “no”.  It might be politically incorrect to request that they answer politely, but it is my opinion that a little dose of manners is good for them!

Yet, sometimes when I pray, I forget to use my manners.  I ask for blessings in my life which I don’t deserve, I ask for forgiveness when I am slow to forgive others, I ask for peace when I neglect quiet time with God, I ask for love when I am unlovely, and so many other things.  I forget to use the “please” word on a daily basis in my spiritual life.

I also forget to say “thank you” which is the most important of the two “Magic Words”.  It is so easy to forget when prayers are answered, blessings are abundant, peace flows like a river, or love is abounding to say a simple “thank you” to God for His blessings and His goodness. Sometimes  I need to be reminded of these two “magic words”.

“I just thank God for all of His blessings.”  James Brown

“A friend loves at all times.”  Proverbs 17:17

“There are big ships, and small ships, but the best ship is Friendship.”  Robert the cruise director

During the years of our ministry, Randy and I have been fortunate to meet and love so many friends.  These are folks that are always there no matter the circumstances- they would do anything for you and vice versa.  These people are always honest with you and loyal to you no matter the situation.

In 1975 while serving in Dalton, we were awakened around 5 in the morning during a horrific thunderstorm by our friend and neighbor, Sam. A huge creek ran in front of both our houses, and it seems the rain had carried his bridge downstream.  “Randy,” he yelled, “run out to your front yard and see if you can grab my bridge – I’m on my way.”  They did it!  No questions – just I’ll be there!

During our first appointment in Newborn from 1976 to 1978, the summer of 1977 was extremely dry – so dry that rats (cat size ones) would gnaw the screen of our porch trying to get to our dog’s water.  We tried everything to rid ourselves of these awful pests.  One night about dusk, Randy abandoned logic and decided to shoot them as they went about their nightly ritual.  I was in the kitchen when I heard two things pretty close together – a shot and the phone ringing. Sammy, our back door neighbor (a lawyer and now a judge), said one sentence after I said hello, “Diane, I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m coming and I’m bringing my gun, tell Randy not to shoot!”  No questions – just I’ll be there!

We moved to Bowdon in June of 1978 and were expecting our second child in July.  We had met people there, but in July we were still relatively the new folks!  The morning we had to go to the hospital, Randy called our new friend, Sherrod, to ask if she could keep Rob until my Mama got there.  She said, “Of course.”  I didn’t know until sometime later that she was hosting a luncheon that day, but she didn’t hesitate!  No questions – just I’ll be there!

When I think of friends, so many names leap to my mind.  I can still see a group of men who were first church members at Mt. Bethel, then lifelong friends.  They guided, advised, and loved us!  We depended on them for honesty and guidance.  We would never have built such a ministry without them.  No questions, just I’ll be there!

If you know us, you know that when we call or text with the one word “help”, don’t hesitate, just come!  No questions, just I’ll be there!  We will always do the same if it’s humanly possible.

C.S. Lewis said, “Friendship has no survival value; rather it gives value to survival.”  How could we survive without our friends?  God bless all our friends!

“Sunshine is sweet; it is good to see the light of day.”  Ecclesiastes 11:7

Recently I had a conversation with a gentleman in Moultrie, Ga. who is helping our family with some land we own.  Our conversation turned to the large amount of rain we were getting at the time.  This part of South Georgia is the watermelon capital -in fact, I have a friend who was the Watermelon Queen in high school.  I asked him how the watermelon crop was doing, and his reply was, “Well, they sure do need some sunshine to sweeten them up.”

Sunshine is good for the soul as well, and it takes many forms.  It can be the actual sunshine that we see or feel, or it can be the “sunshine” that is brought into lives through small acts.

When we first moved to Mt. Bethel, we had the honor of knowing Miss Eleanor who was over 100 years young at the time and still very active.  On one occasion, we invited some of the ladies in a circle to lunch at our parsonage, and she was among the ones who attended.  Our driveway was very steep, so Randy picked the ladies up in the church van and delivered them to the door.  As they began to unload, it was clear that Miss Eleanor was struggling to get down the steps of the van, so Randy asked if he could help her. She smiled and said, “Honey, I thought you’d never ask!” He scooped her up in his arms, she put her arms around his neck,  and together they came inside. When they got inside, Randy asked her where she would like to sit, and she replied, “Oh, I’m fine right here –  this is like bringing sunshine to my soul.”  Just a touch can be sunshine to many folks.

I think a lot about ways to bring sunshine into lives of those I know and hold dear.  It really only takes a moment of my time to call, text, write a note, give a hug, or reach out in some way.  It can mean the world to someone, and I may or may not know if it’s needed, but I always know it’s appreciated.

I love the sunshine both physically and emotionally.  It provides more than Vitamin D – it provides sweetness to the soul.  A small deed done in the name of God can produce a lot of sunshine!