best friends

loveyourwives,just as Christ loved thechurch.Husbands,loveyourwives,justasChristlovedthechurch.Husbands,loveyourwivesjustasChrist

I received this email from my daughter-in-law the other day and wanted to share it with you. The characters are Dree, my daughter-in-law; Chris, my son; and Noelle, my granddaughter.

Dree wrote:
I wanted to convey a funny Noelle story.

I was leaving Chris a message and she heard me say that he was my best friend. After I was off the phone, she said very firmly, "Daddy can't be your best friend."


Chuckling to myself I replied, "Silly, of course he can. Daddy is my best friend."

Noelle, still with great authority in her voice said, "Does the Bible say he can be your best friend?"
Honestly, I was a little stumped. My biblical knowledge was being challenged by my 4 year old. I had never considered the biblical validity of my husband being my best friend. So I did what every good parent should do and just started talking like I knew what I was talking about.

Eventually I came up with the biblical truth that directs husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the church and that Jesus says that the church are called his friends therefore proving that Chris and I could be best friends within biblical constraints...

She still did not relent and is sure I am wrong about Daddy being my best friend...



Two things I learned from this. First, I guess we've taught her that the Bible is our standard for all things. If the Bible says it, we can do it. Second, I guess I've taught her how to argue... After the conversation was over I realized the argument I had just entertained from my darling 4 year old. Sometimes I forget that I'm in charge I guess!

Me again (Dianne)
I guess what I wanted to share is this: Chris and Dree have been faithful to teach their children the way of God. Even though we live several hours apart, I have been with them many times through the years for family visits, etc. They have always been faithful to pray with Noelle and Ashton at bedtime. No matter how early the bedtime, and what hilarious funny family stories or games they missed, they gladly and faithfully attended the spiritual needs of their children. How grateful I am for their faithfulness to the Lord and to their children in this respect.

One of my greatest regrets is that I did not always have bedtime prayer with my children. I was not always faithful to this Walk With Him. Many days I was so exhausted from the routine of grocery shopping, putting it away, cooking, cleaning, laundry for bed-wetters every day when there were no pull-ups or pampers, sports and all the uniforms that go with baseball, football, soccer, and basketball, school, conferences, church, church activities, and just life in general, that I collapsed in the evenings and was not faithful to their bedtime prayer time.

The years pass so swiftly--I now have all kinds of time to spend with children in the evenings, but no children to spend it with.

By the grace of God all of our sons love Jesus and are serving Him--God can redeem in the blink of an eye our shortcomings when we are genuinely broken and sorry for our failures. Walking With Him in true consecration and faithfulness may not be the easiest thing we've ever done, but from one who is looking back in a rearview mirror and wishing I had done some things differently, I would like to encourage you. Your labors will not be in vain. And even if your children are teen-agers, I believe it is never too late to start.

P.S. I took some liberties with some pictures that I took this past summer of Noelle. I think they are probably a little dramatic for the story above but I took a little "poetic license."

I had a couple of hats that I was taking pictures of her in--when I took the one off that she liked so much, she instantly became very unhappy, I put the other one back on her and instantly she was a sunbeam again. In her defense, I kept her several days, and that was the only time that she showed an "unhappy face." I guess that's what you call it. LOL

Posted in community with the other sojourners at:

Flowers Bloom But Not Today

Birds fly, fish swim, and flowers bloom.

Not today. You jump rope, play jacks, and swing.
Not today. You can have fun in life, oh yes, you still can.
Not today.
While you are in this place it won't be today,
tomorrow, or next week.
It won't be ever.

by Kalaya




A Solemn Cry

Tear-stained pillow,
cries and groans.
I try to give
a cheerful smile,
but there are only
pain and moans.
I try to look up to the heavens
but
it's smoldering with smoke
so thick
I think that
God
might choke.
My parents are gone,
but if they were here,
the days
would still be long.
So now I sit here
shivering of pain and fear
cause that's all you see
when you're here.

by Courtney


Through the Fire

My life is like a burning building,
My soul burns to see
the "Freedom of Life"
outside of these walls.
I cry.
My heart
burns with fear
of tomorrow.
I've been through the flames,
I've been through the fire.

by Brian

Dianne

This is a continuation of the touching writings my 7th graders penned after studying the Holocaust.

These pink flowers were growing on a mailbox when I went searching for beauty yesterday.

Pinnacle--beloved mountain, beloved memories

Sometimes I almost feel guilty for having a love affair with a mountain--the one who is the star of THIS STORY I wrote in 1992. I had to drive out to see it today--55 years later since I first sat in its shadow as I worshiped with my mom and dad, now deceased.

The picture below shows how it looks not in silhouette. The picture I took a few months ago coming in to town from the north was a natural silhouette and quite the fluke. We were flying along at 65mph when I turned and saw the mountain and could barely get my camera turned on and the picture snapped before we were across the bridge. I couldn't believe it turned out as well as it did and with the wrong lens on at that. This one is not quite as romantic--and from a different view, no water in the foreground here. But it is still my beloved. I gain strength from the things this mountain stands for.

Ps 121:1-2

I lift up my eyes to the hills —
where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
NIV


The all-day fellowship meetings at the foot of this mountain--the dinners-on-the-ground, the precious saints who came before. This mountain symbolizes everything precious to me, especially my best friend, Jackie, who died when she was 16, and is buried in its shade.

Life is strange--the mountain remains in all its splendor--nothing changed--the man who encouraged me to the top--gone. For the first 10 or 15 years after our family moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma in the early 70's, when we came home to Arkansas I always made the trip out to Pinnacle Mountain. I guess it has always reminded me of the solid rock, the great rock--the true lover of my soul--Jesus.

Dianne

the big four-oh!

Surprise! Traci really got Michael tonight. Today was his 40th birthday and he had to work after work. He teaches a basketball skills class. While he was teaching in the gym (he is very focused--about basketball), she set the whole thing up in the lobby which is also the school's cafeteria and concession stand area--a pretty neat set up, really.

They have a small kitchen area off of the concession and a big screen for showing videos etc. to the kids. He was totally surprised. Lots of family and lots of his basketball girls and their families were there. I will post another page of pictures tomorrow but wanted to get this up for right now.

Happy birthday, Michael!!

a painful cry

This is a continuation of the touching writings my 7th graders penned after studying the Holocaust. In follow-up to yesterdays's post, we did read The Hiding Place and we watched the movie.



A Painful Cry

Here I am suffering
in this camp,
Why, oh why, does my stomach cramp?
Day after day, dear Lord I pray
That You will send an angel
To rescue me someday.

My parents are gone,
I am so alone,
I wish I could say one word
And I'd be home,
But, why go home when I'd only be alone?
Why, oh why is my history gone?

I remember
when the birds used to sing a beautiful song,
But, when they all left, they took it along.
I remember
when there were beautifully colored trees,
And when the wind used to blow,
I felt a wonderful breeze.
I remember
When the squirrels used to run and play in the grass,
But now all that's on the ground
Is filthy old trash.

Where have all the beautiful things gone?
Why don't I have a place to call home?
Again I must say,
I pray each and every day
Please, dear God, send an angel
To rescue me today.

By Elaina




Life

Is life worth living in this ghetto?
That's the question I ask myself
everyday.
How can children live in constant
fear,
Always looking in the rear?
Anticipating the dreadful knock,
Of the Gestapo telling you it's time
For your life to stop.
Is life worth living in this ghetto?
The truth is, I think not.
Anonymous

It's Free, But It's Priceless!

Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it you can never get it back.

The antidote for the above philosophy is this: God says in Joel 2:25: "I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten--"

Have you ever wasted any minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, or years that you wish you could get back? I have.

In scripture it was very important to give of their firstfruits. Ex 23:16 "Celebrate the Feast of Harvest with the firstfruits of the crops you sow in your field."

I encourage you to give of your firstfruits of time to God. God will impress upon you what time of day He wants you to give to Him--whether early morning, mid-day, or evening. Many heroes of the faith in the Bible gave of their time several times a day. This might be something that you want to consider. For me, it had to be early or I couldn't seem to get it done. Raising three sons, it seemed there were too many interruptions after that to give God His proper time and attention. But this is a very personal decision.

When we are serious about establishing a relationship with Him, He will give us wisdom regarding our time and the choices that we make and I truly believe He will multiply our time back to us in ways that we could never dream of.



He will fine tune all the cogs and dials, the springs and coils to make this happen--after all, He hurled time into this universe thousands of years ago--He who is timeless and has always existed, not only understands it but created it. He will be the mainspring that sets our lives into motion--the orchestrated timepiece it was meant to be.



Who of us will have more time tomorrow than we have today to spend with Him? God says to test Him in our giving. Does that mean just the giving of our money or can we trust that He will pour out the windows of heaven and give us a blessing we cannot contain concerning all of our resources including that of our time?



While researching clocks for this post, I came across this interesting definition of a mainspring on Wikipedia.

A mainspring is a spiral spring of metal ribbon that is the power source in mechanical watches and some clocks. Winding the timepiece, by turning a knob or key, stores energy in the mainspring by twisting the spiral tighter. The force of the mainspring then turns the clock's wheels as it unwinds, until the next winding is needed.

I don't know about you but I need my mainspring wound daily so that I have the spiritual energy to get through each day successfully. So the turning of the knob or key would be synonymous with prayer and connecting with this power source.

You will notice that all of the clocks are set for almost midnight. We still have time to pray for our family, we still have time to pray for our friends, we still have time to pray for our colleagues, we still have time to pray for all the people around the world who do not know this Savior. Let's make these last few minutes count for all eternity.

Lord, let me never resent the time I spend alone with you but rather let me look forward to it with an anxious heart as one who waits for the lover of her soul. Truly, Father, you are the Lover of my Soul, the only one who is totally faithful, totally dependable, totally loving, totally gracious, totally merciful, and totally amazing.



P.S. (I just thought I was through--smile) If you are wondering what to do with this time that you spend with Him, I think the following is a wonderful start. I started doing this several years ago and I can't get enough of the Psalms. I read 5 Psalms a day. On the 23rd day of the month I read Psalm 23, 53, 83, 113, and 143. The pattern is to start with today's date and add 30 to it until you are through the Psalms.

When I was sharing this recently with someone who asked about my Bible study habits, she asked why every 30 and why not 5 in a row? I honestly don't know except I read this somewhere and it works. They just go together. It is amazing how they relate to one another.

Read a line or two and meditate on it. Give it time to sink in and give God time to reveal things in your spirit and to bring thoughts to your mind. Clearing our minds of clutter and sin helps to hear the still, small voice of God. This is prayer--communicating with God. A very simple and easy way to start.

Five Psalms may seem like a lot to you and unmanageable right now. Don't let that discourage you. Start with one chapter or even one scripture. Don't underestimate the power of even one scripture. Hebrews 4:12-13 states, "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

Pray for God to bring good literature and people into your life who will help teach you where to go from here.

You will never regret getting started on this prayer journey. And you will find, that as the Bible admonishes us to pray without ceasing, more and more you will be having a running dialogue with Him all day long. I think He likes that. I know I do.

Posted in community with the other sojourners at:

Ballet Magnificat

heroes of the faith, ballet, holy times of worship



Today I want all of my thanks to go to God who raised up great men and women of the faith who blazed the trails of Christianity with sacrifice, faithfulness and service. I especially am grateful today for the lives of Corrie and Betsie Ten Boom.

If you have never read their story, I beg, even plead with you to get it today. It is the best book I have ever read and it changed my life. The only thing is: Forever after you will use it to measure all books that you read and there are not many that can even come close in my estimation. I have provided links in the paragraph below to Ballet Magnificat and to the story of The Hiding Place. After going to The Hiding Place website, if you will click on HISTORY there is a short synopsis of this most amazing of stories.

At our church tonight we had a presentation given by the group, BALLET MAGNIFICAT. It told the story of Corrie and Betsie in The Hiding Place. The dancing was world class, the music incredible, the atmosphere -- one of worship and awe. Thank you Ballet Magnificat for bringing this glorious production to Arkansas. So I am also thankful for ballet, especially ballet that is dedicated to the glory of God.

















Before I arrived at the ballet I prayed that I would be able to get at least a couple of shots of the ballet that would be good enough to share since I knew there would be no flashes allowed.

I arrived 45 minutes early to get a good seat and there were probably 200 or 300 people in line ahead of me. By the time I could get in, I could not get a good seat at all. The place was jam packed. I think they had to turn away a hundred or so people. I could not see well at all where I was sitting so I stood at the back wall. There were quite a few people who stood through the whole production and we were there about 2.5 hours.

At intermission quite a few people left because it was just so crowded. I then was able to get a seat down front about 4 or 5 rows back so I was able to get the two good shots above. --no flash--I was so happy to get those!

They had dancers from all over the world and Corrie's part was played by a lovely young woman from Japan.

The most incredible thing happened toward the end--Because of the crowded conditions, they brought in carpet for many of the children to sit down front in the altar area so it would free up seating for more adults. As the ballerina in jubilation was dancing her last dance and the praise song was playing, the children stood up and started performing sign language to the praise song. It was an incredible, touching sight.

I am thankful for heroes of the faith, ballet, and holy times of worship, not orchestrated, just spontaneous worship. How joyful! Well, I love the orchestrated and rehearsed worship also. The children just especially touched my heart last night.

Dianne

UPDATE: I just found this YouTube video that will give you a glimpse of the beauty we saw.