EASTER AND SPRING QUOTES - FROM "GOOD HOUSEKEEPING"

 

Chuang Tzu        Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly.

John 20:29        Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

Helen Keller        Faith is the strength by which a shattered world shall emerge into the light.

Martin Luther King Jr.         Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.

N. T. Wright        Easter was when Hope, in person, surprised the whole world by coming forward from the future into the present.

Victor Kraft        Spring shows what God can do with a drab and dirty world.

Roma Downey        People celebrate Easter with their near and dear ones. Nothing can be a better holiday to spend with your family than to celebrate the journey of the life of Jesus.

Robert H. Schuller    Wait. Be patient. The storm will pass. The spring will come.

Billy Graham        The entire plan for the future has its key in the resurrection.

William P. Young    I really do believe that God is love, one of deep affection and grace and forgiveness and inspiration.

Martin Luther        Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime.

Reba McEntire        Easter is very important to me. It's a second chance.

Janine Di Giovanni     Easter is meant to be a symbol of hope, renewal and new life.

Saint Augustine        God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.

Pope John Paul II    Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are the Easter people and Hallelujah is our song.

Kate McGahan        The very first Easter taught us this: that life never ends and love never dies.

C.S. Lewis        I believe in Christ, like I believe in the sun — not because I can see it, but by it I can see everything else.

Pope Francis        We proclaim the resurrection of Christ when his light illuminates the dark moments of our existence.

Jeffrey R. Holland    He knows the way because He is the way.

Pope Francis        God is love and He has defeated evil.

Evan Esar        Easter is the only time when it's perfectly safe to put all of your eggs in one basket.

Matthew 28:6        He has risen.

Dwight L. Moody    Faith makes all things possible ... Love makes all things easy.

AAADD: Author Unknown

I was recently diagnosed with AAADD: Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder and this is how it manifests.

I decided to wash my car, but as I started toward the garage I spotted the mail. I thought I’d better go through the mail first. I laid the car keys on the table, put the junk mail in the trash, and noticed that the can was full. So I put the bills on the table and got the trash to take out, but since I was going to pass by the mailbox I decided to pay the bills and mail them first.

I found my checkbook, but there was only one check left. I went to my desk in the study to get more checks, where I found a bottle of juice I’d been drinking. The juice was getting warm so I needed to put it in the fridge to keep it cold. On my way to the kitchen I saw a vase of flowers that needed to be watered. I set the juice down on the counter and saw my reading glasses that I’d been searching for.

Before taking them back to my desk I filled a container with water for the flowers, and I suddenly spotted the TV remote which I needed to take back to the family room. I accidently spilled some of the water on the floor so I walked to the hallway closet to get a towel to wipe it up. On the way, I tried to recall what I was planning to do next. I stood there trying to remember my next move and my mind went blank.

At the end of the day, the car wasn’t washed, the bills weren’t paid, there’s a warm bottle of juice on the counter, and the flowers weren’t watered. Plus, there is still only on check in the checkbook, I couldn’t find the remote or my glasses, and my car keys are missing.

I tried to figure out why nothing got done. It’s quite baffling because I was very busy all day and I got very tired. I know it’s a big problem and I need help. But first I’ll check my email, or maybe go watch some TV, or just take a nap.

MY MANY BOOKS

 

When I was starting out in my career, it was customary to have an extensive library. In addition to novels and histories, one needed dictionaries, encyclopedias, atlases, thesauruses, and other reference volumes in which one could find exactly what was needed for study or writing. It was an honor to have as many books as one could afford and use. When I was studying theology I needed an exhaustive concordance, several commentaries, a few Bible versions, devotionals, topical studies, and others.

One problem, however, was if you needed a fact about a certain topic you would look it up, write it down, and place the volume back on the shelf. Then it would stay there until you needed another piece of information from it, if ever. So some collected more dust than others, but you had to keep them just in case.

I once had a few hundred books, but I’ve given many away – to the library, to Goodwill, to thrift shops, to friends – and I’m down to around 100 now. There are more I can eliminate, but some are hard to part with. For example, I still have my “Handbook of Chemistry and Physics” – a 2,054 page tome that weighs five pounds. I’ll never need it again, but it brings back a lot of good memories. In fact, most of the books I still own have more sentimental value than any intrinsic or actual value.

Now, of course, everything I need is on my computer. I have more books available online than I could have ever owned. I don’t need to walk to a bookshelf, I simply search for what I want, and it’s on my screen before I blink. To me, this seems unfortunate for the younger generations. There’s something cold and impersonal about reading electronically. They’ll never experience the feel and fragrance of an old familiar title.

That’s what I mostly miss about my many books. Alas, my sentimentality has been revealed again.

Copyright 2024 by Carl E Gustafson

OLD FRIENDS

 

Old friends can mean two things: either they’ve been friends for a long time, or they’re simply old. Sometimes it’s both. I’m blessed with many old friends. Some I’ve worked with, some from church, from school, from golf, from neighborhoods, and from other places. But they’ve been a wonderful part of my life.

My hope is that I’m as much a blessing to them as they are to me. I try to be. I keep in touch with phone calls, texts, and emails. Thankfully with old friends you don’t have to text before calling. And they often contact me as well. It’s especially nice now, since I can’t travel as far due to health limitations.

I do miss having lunch with my old friends as often as I used to. In fact, in a previous post I listed the many restaurants at which I’ve dined with my lunch buddies. There have been many, many good meals. And I can’t golf as much as I’d like. Over the years I’ve golfed at well over 200 courses around the country. (And my game improved about zero.) But the fun is in the fellowship and being able to see their birdies and eagles once in a while.

There’s a song by the Gaither’s entitled “Old Friends.” A few of the phrases are: “What a find, what a priceless treasure.” “Like a rare piece of gold; my friends make it great to grow old.” “I’m a rich millionaire in old friends.” That describes friendship very, very well.

Besides friends here on earth, God can also be our friend. Recall the great old hymn: “What a friend we have in Jesus.” And the Bible speaks of God’s friendship in the following verses.

James 2:23 (NKJV) "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the friend of God.

Exodus 33:11 (NKJV) So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. 

John 15:15 (NKJV) Jesus said to the apostles: No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends.

The most magnificent thing about friendship is that it will continue into Heaven. We can spend eternity with our friends.

TODAY I AM "NORMAL" By Charles Richards, Licensed Counselor

 

Charlie and I met in Boy Scouts over 60 years ago. He’s been a friend, a brother in Christ, and a counselor to me as well. He’s always been perfectly normal in my opinion, but his writing reveals more.

This post has been a long time in coming. 

As long as I can remember, I have been overweight.  When I graduated from High School, I weighed 245 pounds; college 265.  Being the overachiever that I am, throughout my life, I gained another 100 pounds, reaching 365 pounds.

In the early 1990's I had weight loss surgery.  I got down to 214 pounds, but gained some weight back, stablelising at 245 pounds for a number of years.

Shortly before the pandemic, I was teaching a graduate counseling class in addictions.  One night, I was lecturing on Harm Reduction, which is where we teach those with an alcohol addiction to drink responsibly, i.e., you can have a beer at a party, but you don't need to get drunk.  As I was talking, I realized I have always rationalized my addiction to food...it goes like this:  "As a person addicted to food, I still have to participate in my addiction."  Driving home from that class, I decided to stop rationalizing and take control of my addiction.

Since that time, I have lost and maintained in the 170-180 RANGE.  Recently, I was looking up the ranges for classifying weight.  I was pleased that I have gone from MORBIDLY OBESE, to OBESE, to OVERWEIGHT.  I then saw that if I lost an additional 5 pounds (from the 170) I could be in the NORMAL range for my age, gender, height.

Today, I weigh 164 pounds.  I tell you that, not to gloat, not to say "look at me", but to say if I can do it, so can you!!

Addictions are hard, but through support and those in our tribe that cheer for our successes, we can do it!

I hope this is an encouragement to you.

See more at cdrtherapy.com. Or search for CDR COUNSELING.

MERRY CHRISTMAS - GOD'S GIFT (By Chuck Swindoll)

 

A TINY GIFT…WONDERFULLY WRAPPED, SILENTLY DELIVERED

Since the first Christmas celebration, one word has crossed everyone’s lips more than any other this time of year. It isn’t the word carol or tree or food. It’s gift. 

With all the giving and receiving that happens at Christmastime, it seems right that we pause to think about God’s gift to us … His Son. 

Jesus was the one-of-a-kind, original must-have Gift that God intended for every person on Earth. 

Reflecting on God’s generosity in giving His Son, the Apostle Paul penned my favorite Christmas verse. I always love seeing it on Christmas cards: 

“Jesus was wrapped in history. Sovereign over time, God wove the events of history so that they dovetailed perfectly, at just the right time, with prophecy.”

“Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15, NASB). 

Why is God’s gift indescribable? One simple reason: Jesus was so much more than a tiny baby lying in a manger! As we gaze closer and think deeper, we see Jesus wrapped in more than swaddling clothes … much more! 

First, Jesus was wrapped in prophecy. Read Isaiah’s astounding prophecy of Jesus as mighty God and eternal King centuries before Jesus was born. 

Second, Jesus was wrapped in history. Sovereign over time, God wove the events of history so that they dovetailed perfectly, at just the right time, with prophecy. 

Third, and most significantly in this context, Jesus was wrapped in mystery. True “awe” resides in the mystery of Jesus’ nature. Even in this tiny baby, we find undiminished deity clothed in perfect humanity. Linking the two natures together in one personality, housed in one unique body, the God-man Jesus was born. No less deity, no less humanity, in one person, in one body, forever. 

That’s awe-inspiring mystery! No wonder hosts of angels declared in unison, “Glory to God in highest heaven” (Luke 2:14). What words fail to describe, only worship can express. 

This is why the Christmas story must be repeated in God’s words time after time after time, year after year! That’s the only way people will hear the truth … and believe it. 

So, as you celebrate Christmas this season, sing the carols, enjoy the food and exchange the gifts. But don’t let the season pass without remembering the prophecy, the history and the mystery that surrounds the original, must-have, indescribable Gift: that tiny baby wonderfully wrapped, silently delivered … eternally adored.

©2018 by Charles R. Swindoll (Edited for length from Decision Magazine 12/24)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! 2024

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

This is how I feel this year. In spite of health issues and other challenges, God has been good, God is good, and God will always be good. We can count on His continued help and blessings!

A few things I’m thankful for: a loving wife; a wonderful family; good friends; life and health; the comfort of God’s Word; soothing Christian music.

Wait, there’s more: heat in the cold weather; healthy food for energy; a nice house for shelter; a reliable car to drive, a comfortable bed.

Also: excellent restaurants in which to dine; dependable doctors when treatments are needed; drugstores nearby for medications; meds themselves – some lifesaving; a hospital right here in town.

In addition: paved roads; natural gas; electricity; fresh running water; city sanitary service; street lights; friendly neighbors.

Plus: a Bible teaching church; a men’s Bible study; an unending supply of Spiritual teachers on the internet; enlightening books galore; uplifting symphonies.

Furthermore: computers; cell phones; televisions; airplanes; trains; stoves, refrigerators; lights; clothing; shoes.

Additionally: a beautiful world – just a glimpse of Heaven; the perfect atmosphere; the water cycle – including snow; the colorful flowers; the variety of animals; the seasons; the days and nights.

Most important: the gift of Everlasting Life through faith in Christ; the promise of an eternal home; the joy and peace of being in God’s presence; the reunion with those who have gone on before – and being with them forever!

ELECTORAL COLLEGE BENEFITS

The 2024 Presidential Election brought attention once again to the Electoral College. The losing party often berates it as unfair, but it was actually a fantastic idea by the founding fathers. The Heritage Foundation explains it far better than this author can. The following is from Heritage.org:

When the Framers drafted the Constitution in 1787, they could not have predicted the many changes and advances that our society has undergone since the 18th Century. However, through their genius and foresight, they designed an electoral system that has the ability to adapt to modern-day America and work even better than they could have anticipated. Below are some of the many benefits of the Electoral College.

PRESERVES FEDERALISM. The Electoral College preserves the principles of federalism that are essential to our constitutional republic. The U.S. is a large country made up of people from very different regions and cultures, and federalism is an important way of preserving the differences that make us unique while uniting us behind one common federal government.

ENCOURAGES BROAD COALITION BUILDING AND MODERATION. The Electoral College prevents presidential candidates from winning an election by focusing solely on high-population urban centers and dense media markets, forcing them to seek the support of a larger cross-section of the American electorate. This addresses the Founders’ fears of a “tyranny of the majority,” which has the potential to marginalize sizeable portions of the population, particularly in rural and more remote areas of the country.

PROMOTES LEGITIMACY OF ELECTION OUTCOMES. The Electoral College increases the legitimacy and certainty of elections by magnifying the margin of victory, thereby diminishing the value of contentious recounts and providing a demonstrable election outcome and a mandate to govern. Since 1900, 17 out of 29 presidential elections have been decided by 200 or more electoral votes.

A MECHANISM FOR STABLE ELECTIONS. The Electoral College makes elections more stable, and less likely to trigger contentious recounts. Every state has different procedural rules for the administration of elections, including how recounts are triggered and conducted and how provisional ballots are counted.

DISCOURAGES VOTER FRAUD. While no system can completely eliminate the risk of individuals trying to cheat the system, the Electoral College minimizes the incentives for voter fraud because the system isolates the impact of stolen votes. Under the current system, stolen votes only affect the outcome of one state rather than the national outcome. 

Let us pray that the Constitution and the Electoral College stay intact in every future election for many more generations.

SILENCE IS GOLDEN by Pastor Rick Sams

I found a post that is worth reposting.

Fear is one of our most basic and prevalent emotions. We don’t usually think that silence is something to be afraid of.

But in Minneapolis there is a room that absorbs 99.9% of any sound in that room. It’s the world famous echo free chamber of the Orfield Laboratories. It’s: “The quietest place on earth.” Total silence can warp a person’s spatial orientation so the only safe posture in said room is sitting because one’s balance goes out of whack.

But it’s not falling that people fear, it’s the deadly total silence. NO ONE has been able to stay in that room for more than 45 minutes. So what are we afraid of? Being alone with our thoughts? Having to face ourselves instead of all the other distractions? Realizing we don’t make very good company?

I don’t have the answer why we seem to fear silence, and neither has anyone else offered an explanation that I know of - except God.

It’s in the silence we best hear His voice, and that scares a lot of people. I know many make noises about wanting to hear God speak to them, specifically to know His will for their lives. But though they hear, they don’t listen; meaning obey.

In I Kings 19:1-13 the unparalleled prophet had just come through an amazing victory. Now he’s on the run…defeated. He’s fled to the wilderness to escape an evil queen that had put out a contract on his life. It was in a cave Elijah expected to hear God’s voice amidst all kinds of noise—a mountain shattering wind, an earthquake, a raging fire. But God wasn’t to be heard in those sounds of nature raging. His voice came in the silence. There he received a fresh calling from God. 

It was in the barren wilderness where Jesus clarified his history changing calling. He spent an entire night alone listening for THE Voice. Only then did he choose the 12 men who would change the world: His disciples. “Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed."

On the backside of a desert Moses was sent back to the place he ran from 40 years earlier to now lead God’s people, Israel, out of slavery and into the freedom of the Promised Land.

So what are you afraid of? There are 365 “Fear nots” in the Bible. The most common follow up promise is: “For I will be with you!”

Go seek a quiet time alone with the One who promised he would never leave us, a place to hear from the One who most often speaks in the silence. Even if you can’t stand the silence for more than 45 minutes what you hear from Him will be worth the discomfort.

THE 2024 ELECTION - 09/24/24

I haven’t written about politics since 2019, but with another national election coming soon in the USA, it’s time. Though I write with much trepidation, I’ll try to be professional. [But since I don’t get paid, professionalism is a moot point.]

Some presidential elections are such that either candidate could win and very little change would be recognized in the next four years. This one is not even close to that idealism. In fact, it’s been a long time.

My biggest concern about current elections is the dishonesty and outright lies that are stated about a candidate from the opposing party. This happens sometimes from the person running and other times from supporters, and frequently from news agencies.

The beauty of the Internet is that previous statements of politicians are recorded for posterity, and anybody is able to fact check any prior policy announcements that have been made. And in this election, we have a former President who has a successful four-year public record available for review, and a Vice President who also has several public office records for evaluation.

In light of this, there is no excuse for an uninformed electorate. Pay attention to political speeches with a grain of salt, and weigh the history of everyone running for office at every level, but especially those running for President. Listen to those who have a similar philosophy to your own, but also hear what others are saying.

Most importantly, we can pray for wisdom for ourselves and for the candidates, as well as for those already in office. God will answer that prayer and give us clarity of thought, and provide direction for our votes.

When this election is over, the United States will either correct its course, or continue on in the questionable direction it is now headed.

COPYRIGHT 2024 BY CARL E GUSTAFSON