Lessons in life!

My mother was recently put in the hospital and while we were there visiting over the weekend I was reminded by one of the other patients that God's time is not our time.

When we were visiting on Saturday, my mom was not having a good day and she wasn't really wanting to visit with us.  While I know she can't help it, it makes me feel bad, guilty even, but I can't change it.  It can make you feel pretty useless.

There was a lady sitting next to her who told me she grew up with mom.  She went on to tell me that while this may seem hard now, God has a plan that we know nothing about.  His timing is not ours and while we can't see why this is happening now, one day we will look back on it and know why this happened.

While I know in my head that God is completely in control, when we are going through something that makes no sence to us it can be hard not to ask "Why me?"

So it really meant a lot to be reminded by someone else who was in the midst of the trial so to speak that even she knows God is in control.

Sometimes it takes being reminded by someone else that everything is OK.

Let him have all your worries and cares, for he is always thinking about you and watching everything that concerns you.

2 Peter 5:7

You have not because you ask not

Last Sunday, our church service was one of the most touching, sweet, emotional services that I can remember.


Our Pastor had told us that he was thinking of doing things differently, and it would be an anointing/hands on kind of service.


It was amazing!!!


He started out by reading scriptures, like the story of the lady who touched his garment in the crowds and was instantly healed!  What a miracle!  She knew that if she could just touch him, she would be healed.


Is that faith or what?


There was another story of a father asking Jesus to heal his son, because the disciples tried and they could not heal him.  (He was possessed.)  Jesus says to his disciples, You have no faith, how long must I stay with you?  He then told the boys father that all things are possible for the one who believes.  Then he cast the evil spirit from the boy.


Key:  All things are possible for the one who believes.


Amazing!  




It was awesome, then we had an alter call and you were able to go and pray on behalf of yourself, or someone else.  Actually we were given a blank piece of paper to write down what we wanted to pray for.  


It was so moving, I knew that God was in that place.


Isn't it great to know that miracles still happen, all we have to do is believe!

Jesus said, "Go, you are healed because you believed."  At once the man could see and he followed Jesus on the road.

Mark 10:52

Why do bad things happen to good people?

This is an age old question that I feel sure you have asked yourself 1000 times, at least I have.  And unfortunately, I still don't know the answer.


Why does it seem like some people are handed everything, and others who may struggle or may be trying as hard as we can to live for Christ, well they seem to get knocked down more than they get helped up. 


Could it be that we are looking at it in the wrong way?  Maybe we should be asking ourselves through all those hardships what we can learn from it?  


Maybe we should just reach out to God and hold on.  Maybe that's all he wants, and all he ever wanted.


Sometimes I think we definitely try to make things more complicated than they should be, and sometimes we just feel sorry for ourselves.  


This morning I was frustrated about something that I didn't need to be, something that was really trivial.  But because of the person who did it, I let it get to me and I shouldn't have.


Now what can I learn from that?  


Let's see.
1.  I can't control other people, only myself.  Sometimes, I'm not very good at that.
2.  God is in control, always has been, always will be.
3.  Be a servant to others and quit worrying about what other people do.


There are probably a lot more lessons I could get out of that, but those seemed the most obvious to me.  

We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him.  They are the people he called because that was his plan.

Romans 8:28  New Century Version

God Lives Under the Bed

 I received this in an email today, and I thought it was worth sharing.
Thanks Rhonda.


GOD LIVES UNDER THE BED

 I envy Kevin. My brother, Kevin, thinks God lives under his bed. At least that's what I heard him say one night.


 He was praying out loud in his dark bedroom, and I stopped to listen, 'Are you there, God?' he said. 'Where are you? Oh, I see. Under the bed...'


 I giggled softly and tiptoed off to my own room. Kevin's unique perspectives are often a source of amusement. But that night something else lingered long after the humor.  I realized for the first time the very different world Kevin lives in.


 He was born 30 years ago, mentally disabled as a result of difficulties during labor. Apart from his size (he's 6-foot-2), there are few ways in which he is an adult.


 He reasons and communicates with the capabilities of a 7-year-old, and he always will. He will probably always believe that God lives under his bed, that Santa Claus is the one who fills the space under our tree every Christmas and that airplanes stay up in the sky because angels carry them.

 I remember wondering if Kevin realizes he is different. Is he ever dissatisfied with his monotonous life?

 Up before dawn each day, off to work at a workshop for the disabled, home to walk our cocker spaniel, return to eat his favorite macaroni-and-cheese for dinner, and later to bed.


 The only variation in the entire scheme is laundry, when he hovers excitedly over the washing machine like a mother with her newborn child.


 He does not seem dissatisfied.

 He lopes out to the bus every morning at 7:05, eager for a day of simple work.

 He wrings his hands excitedly while the water boils on the stove before dinner, and he stays up late twice a week to gather our dirty laundry for his next day's laundry chores.


 And Saturdays - oh, the bliss of Saturdays! That's the day my Dad takes Kevin to the airport to have a soft drink, watch the planes land, and speculate loudly on the destination of each passenger inside. 'That one's goin' to Chi-car-go! ' Kevin shouts as he claps his hands.


 His anticipation is so great he can hardly sleep on Friday nights.


 And so goes his world of daily rituals and weekend field trips.


 He doesn't know what it means to be discontent.


 His life is simple.


 He will never know the entanglements of wealth of power, and he does not care what brand of clothing he wears or what kind of food he eats. His needs have always been met, and he never worries that one day they may not be.


 His hands are diligent. Kevin is never so happy as when he is working. When he unloads the dishwasher or vacuums the carpet, his heart is completely in it.

 He does not shrink from a job when it is begun, and he does not leave a job until it is finished. But when his tasks are done, Kevin knows how to relax.

 He is not obsessed with his work or the work of others. His heart is pure.


 He still believes everyone tells the truth, promises must be kept, and when you are wrong, you apologize instead of argue.

 Free from pride and unconcerned with appearances, Kevin is not afraid to cry when he is hurt, angry or sorry. He is always transparent, always sincere. And he trusts God.

 Not confined by intellectual reasoning, when he comes to Christ, he comes as a child.. Kevin seems to know God - to really be friends with Him in a way that is difficult for an 'educated' person to grasp. God seems like his closest companion.

 In my moments of doubt and frustrations with my Christianity, I envy the security Kevin has in his simple faith.

 It is then that I am most willing to admit that he has some divine knowledge that rises above my mortal questions.

 It is then I realize that perhaps he is not the one with the handicap. I am. My obligations, my fear, my pride, my circumstances - they all become disabilities when I do not trust them to God's care.


 Who knows if Kevin comprehends things I can never learn? After all, he has spent his whole life in that kind of innocence, praying after dark and soaking up the goodness and love of God.

 And one day, when the mysteries of heaven are opened, and we are all amazed at how close God really is to our hearts, I'll realize that God heard the simple prayers of a boy who believed that God lived under his bed.

 Kevin won't be surprised at all!

 When you receive this, say a prayer. That's all you have to do. There is nothing attached. This is powerful.