Hello my friends! Beautiful weather today!! Good for no rain!! We've had too much rain lately, we can sure use sunny days!! More rain coming this week yet, anyway!! My blessings today - had my sister here overnight again last night, she brought apple kuchen so we had that for breakfast. She has such a bad infected toe, that it's hard for her to walk, and no shoes would be painless for her, so this morning Linus took her to a shoe place that helps people like her and she got a good pair of shoes that fits well, without pain and she was sooooo happy!!!! Velcro straps too and she loves that!!! I was so happy she found a good pair of shoes, she goes to the foot doctor in a few weeks for her appointment. It's so sad they have to wait so long for appointments with the specialist. It was a joy having her here, you sure could never tell she is 91 years old!!! Tomorrow is car shopping day for Darla - please pray she finds just the right one for her that will be good for her back.
We cannot go back and have a new start, but we can start now
and have a new ending. Lord, this present moment is so powerful
in my life. Guide me to use it wisely.
Scripture for the day:
"It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that
I have spoken to you are spirit and life." ~John 6:63
Meditation for the day:
Our lives are God's gift. We use our lives to train our souls. This
life we live is not so much for the body as for the spirit. We often
choose the way of life that best suits the body, not the way that best
suits the spirit. God wants us to choose what suits the spirit as well
as the body. When we accept this belief, a wonderful molding of charter
is the result. When we reject it and God's purpose for our life is
frustrated, our
spiritual progress is delayed. Our souls are being trained by the good
we choose. Thus the purpose of our lives is being accomplished as we
choose good.
Prayer for the day:
I pray that I may choose what is good for my spirit. I pray that I may
realize God's purpose for my life and choose good.
One God in Three Persons:
Jesus said to Nicodemus: "God loved the world so much that He gave His only
Son."
One God in Three Persons
During Eastertide much of the focus in the liturgy is on the risen Christ
and last Sunday Eastertide concluded with the commemoration of the coming of
the Holy Spirit. Today´s celebration embraces God in all three persons. It
was during the Middle Ages that this Sunday became widely observed as a
separate feast.
PERSONAL PRAYER
Lord our God, you revealed yourself to our ancestors, the Jewish people as a
God of love and compassion.
In giving your Son you showed the depth of that love and revealed to us what
your call for all of humanity is.
In sending your Spirit you showed yet again your wonderful care for the
human race and at the same time enable us to address you as Father, Son and
Spirit.
This is the name in which we are all baptized and which we pray that we may
praise you for all eternity.
We ask this, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, one God, true and living for ever
and ever. Amen.
Food for Thought:
STANDING FIRM
By Rich McLawhorn
Jun 7, 2009
You see it all the time. People achieve success, and then their
personal lives seem to fall apart. As someone once said, success has
made failures of many men. But does that have to happen?
The September 1996 issue of Standing Firm magazine contains a great
story about Bobby Bowden. Bowden is head football coach for Florida
State University. His team's winning record places him near the top in
wins among active coaches at the Division I level. Bowden's record of
successes in bowl games is the highest winning percentage in NCAA
history. So he is successful in his chosen career. Whether you are a
fan of F.S.U. or not, you have to admit
that Bowden is a successful coach.
But there is more to Bowden than the statistics you read in the sports
pages. He is a man of faith, and makes no apologies for that. During
his team's Friday evening meetings before their Saturday games, Bowden
uses valuable time for team devotionals, which he leads. As for his
ongoing leadership of the team's staff, each day he meets with his
staff for devotions and prayer prior to their regular staff meetings.
Each year, Bowden takes his entire team to a predominantly black
church for worship. The following Sunday, he takes the team to a
predominantly white church. There is no deception involved--he writes
a letter to each athlete's parents or guardian to tell them about the
church visits and obtain their approval. "I'm trying to show these
kids that they are accepted in church whether they are white or
black," Bowden said.
So what is the point of this and the many other ways Bowden walks his
walk of faith? Bowden says, "I want to show these kids that you can be
a Christian, you can be a God-fearing man, you can abide by the rules,
and you can still be successful."
How Does This Apply to Our Lives?
A number of social commentators have asked the questions, "Where are
our heroes?" and "Where are the role models for today's youth?" That
is because we constantly read about people who were considered heroes,
but turned out to be villains who compromised their values and broke
the rules. Is it necessary to compromise your values to make it in
life? Bowden's story shows that it is not. No, Bowden is not perfect.
But there is a core to his life. Bowden stands firm in his beliefs--
and is successful. What is the difference between the Bobby Bowden's
of the world, and others? Simply put, some people are like onions.
They have no core, just layers. And when you peel away all the layers,
nothing is left. Don't glorify the "onions" of the world. Instead,
lift up people like Bowden--men and women with a core to their lives,
who exhibit integrity and faith. Help them touch others. Encourage
them. Pray for them. Finally, build and strengthen your own core.
Start by placing your trust and confidence totally in God. Trusting in
God does not guarantee you worldly success or great riches, but the
Bible teaches that something far more important will result, blessings
from God.
"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in
him." Job 17:9
"Drink Plenty of Water"
I've heard it. I've read it. As long as I have been running, it's
always been the same message: "drink plenty of water."
All along most race courses are water stations, and most runners slow
down to drink a cup of cool water. Keeping your water level up is critical
when you run. If you get slightly dehydrated, you will not run well. If you
get moderately dehydrated, you will become disoriented. If you get
seriously dehydrated, you can die. It's serious business.
The first year I ran was 1991, and I was inexperienced (also younger,
slimmer, stupider, etc.) I passed water stop after water stop,
occasionally drinking a swallow or two. I felt good, and I wasn't going to
waste
precious seconds drinking water, even though it was a hot, humid day.
Big mistake. As I neared the final mile, I "hit the wall." My energy
level dropped to zero, I began having to walk some, and I realized I would
have to work hard just to finish. I did make it across the line, but only
with
a tremendous headache and hardly enough energy to walk. It was not much
fun.
I learned an important lesson that year. Stopping for water doesn't
actually slow you down. In fact, you will run a better race if you do drink
water. The bottom line is that your body is simply not designed to function
without water.
In the same way, your spiritual stamina depends on stopping for regular
drinks of "spiritual water." The dilemma for busy believers is finding
time to invest in reading the Word and meeting with God in prayer. Like the
runner intent on reaching the finish line, we tend to put off those
regular drinks of water until we are totally parched.
But in the long run, you will run a better race if you will stop for
spiritual water. In fact, finishing the Christian race at all may
depend on it. And runners who don't ever slow down to take a drink often
stumble
off the course far short of the finish line.
In this year's race, I saw a man become dehydrated just a mile from the
finish. Strangely, he didn't seem to recognize that anything was wrong.
He was swaying from side to side as he walked, mumbling over and over,
"I'm fine. I'm fine." He was so disoriented that he didn't even recognize
his own sick condition.
If you let yourself become spiritually dehydrated, you may not even be
able to recognize it. Stop today to drink some cool "living water." For
serious runners, it's a must.
"Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried
out, saying, 'If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He
who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, From his innermost being
shall flow rivers of living water.'" John 7:37-38
Mark Phillips
TIMES OF REFRESHING
When I linger in Your presence,
All my wants and wishes cease.
From the toiling of a long day
Comes refreshing, comes release.
Gone the little disappointments
And the things which brought me pain.
In Your presence I find solace,
Strength to cope when hope seems vain.
You're aware of every struggle
From my doubts You set me free,
And the time becomes more precious
Which I spend on bended knee.
~ Regina Wiencek ~
CHORES
Author Unknown
Monday - Wash Day Lord, help me to wash away all my selfishness and
vanity, so I may serve you with perfect humility through the week
ahead.
Tuesday - Ironing Day Dear Lord, help me to iron out all the wrinkles
of prejudice I have collected through the years so that I may see the
beauty in others.
Wednesday - Mending Day O God, help me to mend my ways so I will not
set bad example for others.
Thursday - Cleaning Day Lord Jesus, help me to dust out all the many
faults I have been hiding in the secret corners of my heart.
Friday - Shopping Day O God, give me the grace to shop wisely so I may
purchase eternal happiness for myself and all others in need of love.
Saturday - Cooking Day Help me, my Savior, to brew a big kettle of
brotherly love and serve it with clean, sweet bread of human kindness.
Sunday - The Lord's Day O God, I have prepared my house for you.
Please come into my heart as my honored guest so I may spend the day
and the rest of my life in your presence.
May God's peace and joy be yours
and stay with you throughout each day;
May you walk in faith believing that
all good things He sends your way.
May you never cease to thank Him
for the blessings you've received;
May your faith keep on increasing
more than when you first believed.
May you find some time each and
every day to study His word and
pray;
Faithfulness is necessary to follow
closely in His pathway.
The rewards He gives are plentiful
when we give to Him our all;
And we know the answers to our
prayers will come when on His name
we call!
We have His blessed assurance when
we put in Him our trust;
And we know when God is with us,
no one can stand against us!
~Helen Johnson~
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