Oh, To Be There

Last night, Elaine and I watched a Christmas special featuring the Mormon Tabernacle choir. The choir reminded me of what the Bible spoke of as a Heavenly Host that appeared to the shepherds, singing and praising God on high. I thought how wonderful it would be to experience what they did exactly the same way. To witness the sky light up and to be visisted by actual, real Angels sent by the Lord. How wonderful it must have been when they found their way to where the Christchild lay in the manger and to be able to experience first hand that He was sent as the Savior of the world.

I suppose one of the best ways we can celebrate His birth is to try and put ourselves there 2000 years ago. Try to imagine the excitement, the beauty and the shear reality of the scene. For me, Christmas is being there. It is stepping back in time and feeling the burden being lifted as those Angels tell us the Messiah has come!

This year, I invite you to celebrate with me. Put yourself there and revel in the awe, the majesty and the wonderful promise He has made to us all. As we lead up to Chrismas day, 2009, remember the Angel's words, "Fear not, for I bring you good news of great joy."

Shopping At Christmas

I got up early yesterday and got an early start on shopping. It seems I always wait til the last minute to Christmas shop, partly because I always dred the crowds and I really don't enjoy going to malls.

I'm such a skeptic too. I noticed that the cashiers and sales people in the department stores were all displaying smiles that to me seemed artificial. And all the shoppers appeared stressed to me. There must have been a couple thousand shoppers in the mall and about 90 percent of them had no packages in their hands. It seemed as though they were all trying to make up their minds what to buy but couldn't quite get there......me included.

My wife had given me a list of things she'd like to have for Christmas and you would think I would have no problems finding everything on it. I came to realize it wasn't the list itself but trying to make each item I purchased special, just for her, was the chore. You know, the outfit had to be her color, the slippers had to be her style, the jewelry had to be her brand....

By the time the day was done, I had walked what seemed like a hundred miles. I did find all I was looking for and came out with a different frame of mind. As I was driving home, I wondered at the choice of gifts the wise men brought to Jesus when they visited him. How did they choose what to give? What thoughts went into choosing and did they worry about whether it would be pleasing to Him or Mary or Joseph? I had found myself worrying about whether the gifts I give will be pleasing to the recipient when in fact, my wife will be pleased no matter what I give her, even if every item given is not on the list.

Shopping is a lot easier if you just remember what our Lord said...."It is more blessed to give than to receive."

Let It Go

As I approach my retirement date (January 22, 2010), I have a lot of loose ends at work to get tied up. One of them happens to be going through my files and discarding anything that isn't needed to be left behind to future folks doing my job. This morning, as I was going through these files, I came to one that was rather large. It housed expense vouchers that I had completed for various business trips over the years.

I found myself reading some of the business reasons for trips to various places like Dayton Ohio, Rochester New York, Bristol Tennessee and began remembering the details of those trips. Some dated all the way back to 1988!

You see, I have always had this paranoid thought in my head that one day the company may want to audit my vouchers and by hanging on to them, I would have a way to defend myself. I began thinking about what Jesus said according to the Gospel of Matthew....Chapter 6, verse 31: "So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

Over all the years of my career, I always had the fear that "big brother was watching". And now, as I throw away these files, it seems like I kept them all for nothing. As I think about our Lord and Savior, I now am striving to let go of a part of my life that has ruled me for 36 years....I'm finally letting go of "work worry". Yes, I am a little apprehensive about the days to come, only because I do not at this time know what they may bring. But I do know one thing...I will go wherever He may lead me.

Thanks, Lord

My son and I took a stroll yesterday evening to the Chapel at Gainesville's Northeast Georgia Regional Hospital. After the birth of his first child (my first grandson), I invited him to accompany me to the chapel to pray thanksgiving and to my joy, he accepted the invitation. I was so supprised I hardly didnt know what to pray when he got down on his knees next to me at the little altar set there. He had told me on the walk that he felt like God was in the birthing room with them while Kelly was in labor. Apparently, the doctor had been telling them that if the baby's heartbeat continued to drop during the contractions, they would have to seriously consider a c-section birth. He told me that he was praying that that would not be necessary......

A new life brings out the best of us and helps us realize the true reality that our God does, in fact, exist. The Holy Spirit was in the room with Dan and Kelly and little Oliver during those precarious few minutes. As it turned out, no c-section was needed and yet another of the Lord's gracious answers to prayer was answered.

So, what am I thankful for on Thanksgiving Day, 2009? Actually, I dont have the space or time to list it all. Even if I spent the rest of the day listing it all, the list would be incomplete. Formost on the list, however would be the following:

Thanks, Lord for answering prayer and thanks for your loving Grace. I for one will do my best to be deserving. Amen.

Comfort

As a pallbearer in a dear friend's funeral yesterday, I was escorted to the front row of the chapel so that I (and the others) could exit the side door at the end of the service to help with placing the casket into the hearse.

I have never sat on the front row at a funeral and it is a very revealing place to be. Of course, directly in front of me was an astounding array of flowers. As the minister spoke of comfort and as the family grieved, I stared at all the flowers to help me fight off tears. I could smell the fragrance and see the glory of their beauty. The thought hit me that my friend must be walking in a beautiful garden at that time. I was comforted with that thought throughout the service and even through the graveside service as well.

The Lord answered my prayer for comfort by showing me His wonders and assuring me that this was not a goodbye...it was "until we meet again".

Crossroad Decisions

There have been probably only four crossroads I have stood at in my life that have been real cause for concern as to which way to go. First, my decision to join the military, second my decision to ask my wife to marry me, third my decision to return to church. The fourth one I stand at now. This is my decision to retire. After 36 years of faithful service to Ma Bell, I think now it can be time to venture down a new path. It hasn't been an easy crossroads to face.

Pastor Gary has been preaching/teaching on Moses for a few weeks now and that story has been an inspiration to me. When God called Moses to stand at his crossroads, I can only imagine what that must have felt like. After all, Moses was somewhat comfortable at the time and now, to leave and return to Egypt, and convince a hardened Pharoah to release a couple million people from slavery isn't any small task. We must all trust God when standing at a crossroads in our lives. If we allow Him to guide us in the direction to take, the road may not be easy but I can speak from experience, it will always be the correct one.

I can say with some confidence that I have allowed God to guide me. I wouldn't have it any other way. I don't rightly know where the new path will lead, but I do know the walk will be with Him by my side.

Into the Word

I began my first Disciple 1 Bible Class last night and part of the orientation I presented dealt with choosing a Bible that works for you. I provided examples of some of the various English Versions like KJV, NIV, NASB...you know, the common ones. I thought that giving my students a comparison of how translations can differ would help them if they were in the market of choosing a Bible version to use for the course. The thought occurs to me that translators of a language into English encounter a huge wall on some words. Take the word "for" for example. When I say I pray "for" someone, it could be taken two different ways. It could mean I pray on that person's behalf (as if perhaps they can't pray or dont know how to.) Or, it could mean that I am praying that God will help or bless that person. The Scholars and Theologians that translated the Bible had to be so very careful in how they worded passages. After due investigation and research and prayer, I decided on a version of the Bible that would "work for me". I trust however, that it was the Holy Spirit that made the decision FOR me. Whatever version of the Bible you use, just use it. Please.