Those Were The Good Old Days!

I was reading my devotional materials this morning and the above was the title of one of them. This material is not copyrighted so I am going to copy it here. Consider Hebrews 10:32a which admonishes us to remember days gone by. Here's the story:
     A pastor and his wife took a day trip to the birthplace of Ulysses S. Grant, taking in his boyhood home and the one room school he attended. While there the pastor picked up the "Teacher's Rules" that they had to abide by back in those 19th Century southern Ohio school rooms. Here are just a few: Female teachers could not marry or even company with men while under contract. They had to be home by 8:00 p.m. They could not loiter at ice cream stores or ride in a carriage unless with her brother or father. They could not smoke, wear bright colors, dye their hair or wear skirts shorter than two inches above the ankle. Men teachers had to fill lamps, clean chimneys and haul water. They could only court one night a week or twice if they went to church. If he smoked, used liquor, went to pool halls or got shaved in a barbershop he would have to give reason for people not to suspect his worth and integrity. Oh, and after working five years, without fault, could get a raise of a quarter a week with the board's approval.  Copied from Baptist Bread, November/December 2012 issue.

This may seem ridiculous in our modern day but consider: teachers back then were not being accused of raping/molesting students; they were not engaged in pornography; and they didn't get in trouble for having affairs with students. The rules may have been severe, but which would you rather have--severity and integrity or hedonism and danger for your children? I Thessalonians 5:22 tells us to abstain from even the appearance of evil. Like it or not, people judge you by the actions and attitudes they see and you can't stop people from doing that. What kind of reputation do you have? What kind do you want?

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The Perfect Gift

Have you ever seen the movie "The Christmas Box"? I love this movie. It puts things in perspective. Richard Thomas's character is working hard to provide a better life for his family. Great! Every woman wants a man who will be a good provider for his family. It builds trust and security, peace of mind. It's not just accepting responsibility, but embracing it! But the harder he works the more time he's away from his family. He's so intent on their future that he sacrifices the present.

Our world (not just the United States) begins planning for Christmas in October. We're already past Thanksgiving before it even arrives. I hear families bickering and complaining about having to spend so much time together as the holidays approach because THERE'S A SALE AND I'M GOING TO MISS IT! What???!!! Time out, folks! Why is a bigger, brighter, TV, or newest Kindle or Iphone or Ipad so important? Those are things and they don't love you back. They don't even care if they get used or not. They are tools, and if they are making your life more complicated, they are not doing their job.

Our gods have become today's technological wonders and tomorrow's old and inferior products. Wake up and see the stark whiteness behind the words! My favorite part of the movie is when Maureen O'Hara asks Richard Thomas if he knows what the first Christmas gift was. He's baffled by the question and says sort of half-sarcastically, "A tie?" She just looks at him. He says he'll think about it some more. Finally, at the end of the movie, he gets it. The very first Christmas gift was--can you guess? It was LOVE.

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16.

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Don't Throw Away Your Old Toothbrush

     I have a couple of thoughts on this and they are not connected, to please bear with me. The first thought is a practical application. I keep two old toothbrushes on the back of my kitchen sink and one in the bathroom. The reason? In the kitchen, I use one to clean the beaters for my mixer because it's hard to get the ends clean with the dishrag. It also works on wire whisks. The other one is used to clean around the grout on the sink and the drains. The toothbrush in the bathroom is used to clean my combs. No more soaking and waiting for the combs to dry. I put a little soap on them, run warm water over them slowly and use the old toothbrush to get between the teeth of the comb. Done in two minutes! Then I just rinse off the soap.
     My second thought about toothbrushes is this: Consider what a small thing a toothbrush is. (I know that was a grammatically incorrect statement. Never end a sentence with a preposition.) The toothbrush is small and really doesn't do much. It only gets used two or three times a day, and then only for a short time. Yet it is a very important part of our lives (or should be). Think about the job it does. What would happen to your teeth if they were never brushed? What would happen to your breath and your gums? Your teeth would decay and rot away (which some will do anyway just due to wear and tear); your breath would be most foul, and your gums would get infected, and the infection would spread to the rest of your body.
     Do you ever feel insignificant, like your toothbrush? Do you sometimes wonder if you have any purpose or value? Rest assured, my friend, God holds you in high esteem. If you were the only person left on earth, Jesus still would have left heaven to die on a cruel cross, to take your penalty for your sins, and offer you eternal life. He is risen and He is still offering you eternal life. He leaves the decision up to you. If you want to know how to get to know Him, leave me a post. Actually, I'd like for my readers to leave me a post anyway. Let me know what you think. This is an open forum. All comments are welcome. We learn by discussion. Have a blessed day.

And We All Fall Down

Holidays are often stressful for families. Great expectations abound and feelings of resentment and inadequacy bubble and boil like an over-full pan of gravy. We try to get our emotions under control and someone says something or looks at us in a way that makes us want to crawl in a hole and knock their head off at the same time. What can we do? Should we just keep to ourselves and deny the pleasure of the relatives we do get along with? What about their feelings? Sometimes it just gets to be overwhelming and despite our best intentions, we lapse into taking "just one drink," or "just one whatever." Only it doesn't stop with one.
I've never struggled with drug or alcohol addiction but I have friends and loved ones who have. I've watched the turmoil. I witnessed the guilt, repentence, doing better, and another fall cycle. I don't claim to have all of the answers but I serve a God who does.
God loves you right where you are. He wants to take your burdens, your frustrations, your heartaches, your failures. He wants to give you peace. He's waiting for you to ask Him. Once you've asked you have to let Him in. Colossians 3:15 says, "And let the peace of God rule in your hearts." It is a choice. You have to be quiet and let it come in. Savor it. Wallow in it. Thank God for giving you His peace.
Many times in the Bible we are told God will neve forsake His children. You can trust Him. He never changes. He is just and holy and forgiving. When you are weak He is strong. He promises that His grace is sufficient for you. He promised He will never tempt you beyond what you are able to handle but will always provide a way of escape. The important thing to remember is not to give yourself opportunity to fall. "Give no place to the devil. Don't provide opportunity for your flesh to win. When temptation hits turn around and run in the other direction.
If you do fall, don't beat yourself up. Ask God to forgive you. Then read Romans 8:1--there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. Just try again.
I hope this helps. God bless you and have a wonderful Christmas.

I Wish I Had Kept That

I was in the thrift store today (that's my kind of shopping!) and it was filled to overflowing with Christmas decorations all kinds of wonderful things. As I was leaving I heard a man tell one of the workers, "I can't believe it. So much of this stuff looks like the stuff I brought in. It's so cool. I wish I had kept it."

I wonder if we treat our relationships like that sometimes. I am so bad at keeping in touch with friends, even locally. I misplace phone numbers that were written on pieces of paper. I don't take the few seconds it would take to put it in the computer or an address book so I'd know where to find it. I hate to write letters. I always feel like I'm writing a form letter (which I will do for Christmas this year). People don't feel valued if you don't keep in touch. They feel like a foster child that got left out in the cold, or gets shuffled from one home to another (or from one friend to another).

With all of our modern conveniences, texting, e-mail, blogging, cell phones, Facebook, Twitter, wouldn't you think it would be easier to keep in touch? I don't know about anyone else, but I know I am too easily distracted by all the glitter and toys, the apps, or even just learning to use the silly things, that I neglect people I really care about. The biggest regret of my life is losing friends I have taken for granted. Don't be like me. Tell your friends you appreciate them. Send an e-card or a text message. Call them and ask how their day is going. Make plans for lunch or a girl's night out to see a movie. Plan a hiking trip that won't take all day. Plan a picnic with your friends and their kids. Make the most of your friendships while you still have them.

God bless and have a blessed Thanksgiving. What do you think? Tell me about your experiences. You can use a nickname or just initials, a CB handle, whatever you choose. You can remain anonymous but I'd like to hear from you.

Don't Be A Judge

Most of us tend to be critical of others in some way, at some point in our lives. We don't mean to be cruel or thoughtless; we just are sometimes. We say things in a way that puts someone else down or makes them feel small. Sometimes we don't even realize we are being mean-spirited. Sometimes when we do realize it we excuse ourselves by saying, "Well, I'm only human," or "I can't help it; it's just the way I am."

The Bible tells us in Matthew chapter 7, the first five verses that we are not to judge others because we don't judge ourselves with the same standard. We tend to expect more of others than we do ourselves. It goes on to say that God will judge us by the same standard with which we judge others. We should look at ourselves and see where we need to change, then ask for God's help. 

Ephesians 4:32 says, "Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ's sake, has forgiven you." You'll be happier if you just accept others for who they are. 

Communication is the Key

We all know relationships can be very difficult. Even with people we are close to and get along with, still, we can get our feelings hurt, take something the wrong way, or jump to conclusions. The holidays are almost upon us. Did you get the invitation you expected? Did you forget to return a phone call, thereby hurting someone else's feelings? Did your brother (or sister, parent, best friend, etc.) really mean what they said? Or did you just take it wrong?

I am one of those people who suffers from hoof and mouth disease. Writing is easy (easier, anyway) because I can think about what I want to say and how it will come across to the hearer. In conversation I don't have that luxury and things often don't come out of  my mouth they way I intend them. I am a professional apologizer.

My three oldest grandchildren live in Tennessee. They have full lives, and apart from birthdays and holidays, probably don't think much about distant grandparents. Their mom has her hands full just keeping up with them and the home business. I don't hear from her nearly as often as I would like and it's easy for me to think that she just doesn't care about my feelings, or that she's upset with me about something, or a dozen other negative things. The truth is, she's probably extremely busy and doesn't have the energy to think about the grandparents several states away. So I'm swallowing my negativity and will send a nice letter and Thanksgiving card to the family. Maybe I'll hear back. It's worth a try and better than writing something that will upset her. What do you think? Leave me a comment.