Moving Forward in the New Year

"Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord: His going forth is prepared as the morning; and He shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth."-Hosea 6:3

As we approach the coming New Year, you may be wondering what is going to happen.

Years ago, some men were on a leaky old ship in the middle of a rough and stormy sea. One of them asked the captain, "Are we safe?" He said, "Well, the boilers are weak and may explode at any moment. The ship is taking on water. To be very honest with you, we may go up, or we may go down, but at any rate, we are going on."

And that's the way we are as we face this new year. Jesus may come; we may go up. We may die, and go down and then up, but at any rate we are going on.

Reflecting on this past year, allow the Holy Spirit to invade your heart convicting and drawing you to Himself.

Ask for wisdom, courage, and faith to continue on whatever happens this next year!

~Adrian Rogers

Thank you Lord that as the hope and uncertainty of the New Year approaches, we as believers know Who holds the future - the "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace." He is the only hope of mankind. May we rest in this knowledge and have a ...

Happy New Year!

That Night.

That night.

“That night, in all of heaven, there wasn’t a sound
As God and the angels watched the earth.
For there in a stable, the Father’s only Son
Came to give Himself through human birth.
And when the cry of a baby pierced the universe
Once for all man was shown his worth.

And the heavens EXPLODED
With music everywhere
And the angels spilled over heavens edge
And filled the air!
And the Father rejoiced
For He did not lose His Son,
But He gained to Himself forever
Those who’d come.”

In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Luke 2:8-11

Merry Christmas!

Jesus Was Born

Today in Sunday school the lesson was on the birth of Christ from Luke 2:1-20. The Bible truth the kids left with was that Jesus was born as God planned. I want to simply share the "Teacher Connection" for today from Lifeway.

1In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2(This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3And everyone went to his own town to register.

4So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

8And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ[a] the Lord. 12This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

13Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14"Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."

15When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."

16So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

Caesar Augustus was ruler of the Roman Empire. He ordered people to go to their hometowns and register their presence in his kingdom. From earthly appearances Caesar Augustus was in charge, but actually he was doing nothing more than moving under the awesome hand of God.

From heaven's perspective the mighty Caesar was a momentary figure who would disappear in a few short years. Meanwhile, the Lord of Lords and King of Kings was temporarily dwelling in the womb of a young woman making her way to Bethlehem.

We do not know the exact date of Jesus' birth, but we know His birth came at just the right moment. To our human perspective, the moment may not seem right. Joseph and Mary were visiting Bethlehem; they should have been home in Nazareth. They had to lay the baby in a manger; they should have laid Him in His bed at home. God's ways are not our ways. He chose the right moment, the right circumstances for His Son's birth.

God's gift came in a newborn who could not speak, see clearly, nor move on His own. The gift humbly came so that even a simple peasant woman and man could clutch God to their bosoms and love Him. God's gift of Himself was simple and profound.

An angel of the Lord appeared to shepherds - poor, humble, working men. After quieting their fears, the angel told them incredible news: A Savior had come! They would find Him as a newborn infant wrapped in cloths, resting in a manger. Heaven could not keep silent. A great host of heavenly beings filled the sky and broke out in glorious praise and proclamation.

The shepherds ran to see what they had been told. They discovered the little boy in a manger. Before the morning sun came up, they were telling others about the incredible experience of the night: The Messiah had come! This Christmas how can you proclaim the Messiah's birth? What can you do to help others know that Jesus has come?

What The Christmas Tree Means To Me

The evergreen tree reminds me that God's love is everlasting!

The lights on my Christmas tree remind me that Jesus is the Light of the World!

The cross ornaments on my tree are a beautiful reminder of the ultimate price sweet Baby Jesus would grow up and pay for my redemption. Oh, what incredible love displayed by our Father in the birth of Jesus and on that cross and what a privilege believers have to cry out, Abba Father!!

The red ornaments and beading on my Christmas tree reminds me of the reason Baby Jesus was born. The blood that one day He would shed on the cross for my sins!

And the round ornaments remind me that God's love never ends!

The angels of my Christmas tree remind me of the angels that spoke to Mary and Joseph and told them they were going to be the earthly parents of Jesus! Additionally, an angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds to share the incredible news of Jesus' birth. And of course, who could forget the heavenly host that filled the sky and broke out in glorious praise and proclamation.

The star on my Christmas tree reminds me of the star that led the wise men to Baby Jesus!

The gifts under my Christmas tree remind me that Jesus is God's gift to us! His love being the greatest gift anyone could ever receive. We in turn, show our love for others in our own gift giving.

There are other decorations on my Christmas tree and everyone of them point to Jesus. I encourage eveyone to take another look at their own tree and discover Jesus. He's there because He is the reason for the season!

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16

The Virgin Birth

Last week in Sunday school we looked at the role of Mary in the birth of Jesus. This week we considered the man Joseph and the kid’s lesson was titled, “Joseph Heard Good News”. The Bible truth the children left with today was that God chose a family for Baby Jesus. These two lessons are fun for the children because they enjoy the aspect of the angels in both of the stories. (I have included a picture of the angels they made last Sunday and today! We like to take home something that will remind them of the day’s story.)

“18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. 20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 "She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." 22 Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23 "BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL," which translated means, "GOD WITH US." 24 And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25 but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.” Matthew 1:18-25

Now in Matthew 22:42, Jesus asks the Pharisees a question that has been voiced in every generation since then. Jesus said, "What think ye of Christ? Whose son is he? That's the question that needs to be asked in every age, to every person. Whose son is He? Now the Jewish leaders believed that the promised Messiah would be the son of David. They believed that from a human viewpoint He would be a member of the royal lineage of David, the royal family. And they weren't sure of much more than that. They for the most part seemed to reject the idea that the Messiah would be God in human flesh, though there may be some indication that a few of them may have felt that way.

Most of the Jewish people at that time seemed to have been convinced that the King they were going to gain would be of the seed of David, a human being in every sense of royal lineage. In fact, when Jesus claimed to be both the son of David and the Son of God, they accused Him of blasphemy. They expected Him to be of the royal line of David but apparently not to be deity, in human flesh.

Now Matthew gives us the human answer to whose son he is in the genealogy which we see in Matthew 1:1-17. Humanly speaking whose son is He? Son of David. Now in verses 18 to 25 we have the divine answer to, whose Son is He? Son of God. Son of David, humanity, Son of God, deity. Both of those are essential to an understanding of the incarnation. Jesus is God in a human body. Humanly through the lineage of David He gains the right to rule the world, and from the standpoint of deity He gains the very essence of the nature of God by having been born without a human father through the agency of the Spirit of God Himself. And so Matthew in writing his Gospel squarely faces his Jewish readers and all the readers of aIl the ages, and he gives them the answer. The genealogy of Jesus tells you whose son He is, David. And the birth of Jesus tells you whose Son He is, God.

Immanuel, God with us, infinitely rich, became poor. Assumed our human nature, entered our sin polluted atmosphere without ever being tainted by it, took our guilt, bore our grief’s, carried our sorrows, was wounded with our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities, went to heaven to prepare a place for us, sent His Spirit to dwell in our hearts, right now makes intercession for us, and will someday came to take us to be with Him.

And though the incarnation is the most important part of the story it is so important to note that when God works you always find some humble, faithful, trusting, righteous people, like Mary and Joseph. Thank You, Lord, not only for the theology of the virgin birth but for the example of what happens when God uses two simple people. Thank You, Lord, that we who have nothing to offer can be used by You!

"...God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong," 1Corinthians 1:27

"The Invisible Woman"

Today, I would like to dedicate my post to my two beautiful daughters-in-love. They are lovely young women who have been such wonderful additions to our family and deserve a little recognition! After all, they chose to marry Hamblen men and living with that Hamblen sense of humor can try a saint!



Seriously, they are outstanding women of character that are building homes for their husbands and will one day inevitably become the "invisible woman" that the following video speaks to. In fact, Meagan will become a mother this Easter and though at times motherhood will seem like a thankless job those of us that have already walked that road know the endless rewards of raising a child.

The following video was shared with me by a dear friend and contains so much truth for such a short video, I couldn't wait to share it. I saw it and immediately thought of my girls and their futures. Take a moment to watch the video and be blessed!

"How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them; who keeps faith forever; who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets the prisoners free. The LORD opens the eyes of the blind; the LORD raises up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous; theLORD protects the strangers; He supports the fatherless and the widow, but He thwarts the way of the wicked."

Psalm 146:5-9

The Divine Announcement

Today in our preschool Sunday school class we began the story of the birth of Jesus with Mary hearing the good news. Below was the scripture reference for today’s lesson. For the month of December, I thought it would be interesting to follow along with them, perhaps on a little deeper level, as we move through the events surrounding Jesus’ birth.

"Now in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming in, he said to her, 'Hail, favored one, the Lord is with you.' She was greatly troubled at the statement and kept pondering what kind of salutation this might be. And the angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God and behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a Son and you shall name Him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His Kingdom will have no end. And Mary said to the angel, 'How can this be, since I am a virgin?' And the angel answered and said to her, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you and for that reason the holy offspring shall be called the Son of God. And behold, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age, and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. For nothing will be impossible with God.' And Mary said, 'Behold, the bondslave of the Lord, be it done to me according to your word.' And the angel departed from her." Luke 1:26-38

The Old Testament is filled with prophecy and promises of the coming Savior, a child to be born. So much so that at the end of the gospel of Luke in chapter 24 when Jesus after His resurrection was walking with His disciples, it says that He spoke to them and said, "These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you that all things which are written about Me in the law of Moses and the prophets and all the holy writings must be fulfilled. And He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures," talking about the Old Testament. And He showed them Himself in the Old Testament, in the law, in the prophets, in all the holy writings. Every book of the Old Testament anticipates the coming of the Savior, every book. All throughout the Psalms, all throughout the prophets, all throughout the law He is seen as the ultimate and final sacrifice. The general prophecies of His great Kingdom, the specific prophecies such as Micah's statement that He would be born in the town of Bethlehem, 350 predictions concerning this child who would be born are given in the Old Testament, at least.

So this is the story of God coming into the world but it's not the first time we've heard about it. It's been promised. This is the story of its fulfillment. Here's the beginning of the greatest moment in human history, a moment all generations in Israel and the world have awaited. Gabriel comes with the most astounding and significant birth announcement ever made. Amazingly, Gabriel comes right from God. Back in verse 19 it says, "I am Gabriel who stands in the presence of God." That's where Gabriel stands, to be dispatched by God Himself to this duty. He comes down out of heaven to a city in Galilee called Nazareth.

The divine messenger was Gabriel, the divine choice was Mary, and the divine blessing was grace, "Hail, graced one...Hail, favored one," says the angel, "the Lord is with you." God the Almighty, eternal creator of the universe has come down with a message through this angel to be with this girl, to bestow upon her a grace the likes of which no other human being in the history of the world will ever experience, a grace that is beyond comprehension. The issue here is God's choice. You'll notice it says nothing about Mary, nothing at all except she was a virgin. She was just a simple, humble young girl. It was to her that this immense grace was to be given.

In Luke 1:46-56 Mary offered praise for the greatness of God and thanksgiving for being used by Him. At this wonderful season of gift giving we should all take the time to meditate on the gift God gave us in His Son, Jesus Christ!

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16

"Weeping may last for the night...

but a shout of joy comes in the morning." Psalm 30:5

How often have any of us experienced the literal truth of that verse. How heavily does any trouble weigh on us at night! For Tony and I the night of our grief lingers but the joy of the morning has come through the love and support of family and friends. Thank you all for your thoughts and the love that has been extended to us after a sad and traumatic Thanksgiving. It certainly was not our first sad Thanksgiving but we pray it will be our last.

There are two things I wanted to share that have contributed to our joy and healing. The first is the card we received below from our neighbor who unfortunately was on their way to their Thanksgiving celebration when Beau chose to run in front of their car at the last minute. They are wonderful people and we know that this has been very difficult for them as well.

The other news we would like to share is the adoption of another Yorkie that we have named, Mr. Darcy. Though there is nothing that could replace Beau in our hearts, we decided that it was Beau's incredible little personality and the joy that he brought to our lives that led us to the decision to immediately open our home to his little brother. We continue to grieve for the sweet puppy we lost but we are finding our joy and the ability to move forward through the love of Mr. Darcy. He has a personality that is very reminiscent of his brother's but also a uniqueness that is all his own. The picture below is a little blurred due to his inability to sit still and his desire to explore a room he's not allowed in. The quality is poor because it was taken with my iphone! (Mr. Darcy was born on 9/9/09.)

"Those who sow in tears shall reap in joyful shouting." Psalm 126:5

Tragedy Strikes

On Thanksgiving Day the best and brightest little puppy that ever lived left us in a twinkling of an eye to grieve a hole in our hearts that seems impossible to fill. We are consoled by the fact that he was euphorically happy when he ran across the street and never knew what hit him. As someone once said, the best place to bury a dog is in your heart and that is what we intend to do. We have many precious memories of our two years together and if there is another dog in our future it will be because our joy with Beau made it so!

Give Thanks!

"O give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting."

1 Chronicles 16:34

I Remember Mama

No, not the movie from 1948 with Irene Dunne but from my own life with the 31 short years I had with my mama. As I prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving this week I can’t help but remember and give thanks for my mother. It was 24 years ago this Friday that she died from breast cancer and was buried on my birthday, November 30, 1985.

In counting my blessings my mother is always close to the top of this list (my Savior is always first). To borrow a line from the movie… “But first and foremost I remember mama with her secret bank account and her wide open heart for other people’s troubles.”

Mother didn’t have a secret bank account but she lived on a budget and out of that budget she was able to put aside a little bit of money to provide for her family the little extras that the budget didn’t allow. She did without so that her children wouldn’t.

Mother loved her friends as though they were her sisters and she grieved with them and for them. I remember every Friday as she prepared for company – the cleaning and baking and ultimately the joy that an evening of fellowship over “Forty-two” would bring.

I remember her commitment to her Lord and Savior and I saw it lived out on a daily basis. I remember her commitment to sharing her love of Christ through teaching children. She taught 1st grade Sunday school for 32 years and only stopped when the cancer wouldn’t allow her to continue. She shared that love with me and I too have been blessed to carry her work on in teaching children the life saving knowledge of Jesus Christ!

I remember her commitment to her husband and how she loved him. She was indeed his helpmate. She never worked outside of the home but she divided her time between his business and the family so that both were taken care of.

I remember how she loved me and my sister. She supported us in the things that were important to us and she saw to it that we did the things that would make us grow. When zoning took place as I was entering high school and was forced to enroll in the “rival” school, my mother made me join the drill team there. Though I knew no one and truly did not want to do it, ultimately, at the end of high school I had won one of the top offices in the drill team and had many new friends which included my future husband!

I remember how she loved her son-in-laws and how they loved her. I don’t know how it happened exactly but long before Tony and I were married he was calling her Mom and meaning it.

I remember how she looooooooooooooved her grandchildren and was always more than willing to babysit!!














I remember wonderful Sunday lunches after church, family reunions planned by mother, her fun sense of humor, painting lessons at Montie Beach Park, and summer trips to her mother’s in Lockhart.

I remember how hard it was to let my mama go but what a relief it was and is to know that I will see her again one day. I love you, mama!

"An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life. " Proverbs 31:10-12

The Withered Fig Tree

"And He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and spent the night there. Now in the morning, when He was returning to the city, He became hungry. Seeing a lone fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it except leaves only; and He said to it, "No longer shall there ever be any fruit from you." And at once the fig tree withered. Seeing this, the disciples were amazed and asked, "How did the fig tree wither all at once?" Matthew 21:17-20

The blighted fig tree was a apt simile of the Jewish state. The nation had promised great things to God. When all the other nations were like trees without leaves, making no profession of allegiance to the true God, the Jewish nation was covered with the leafage of abundant religious profession. Scribes, pharisees, priests and elders of the people were all sticklers for the letter of the law, and boaster of being worshippers of the one God, and strict observers of all his laws. Their constant cry was, "The temple of the Lord, The temple of the Lord, The temple of the Lord, are these." "We have Abraham to our Father" was frequently on their lips. They were a fig tree in full leaf. But there was no fruit upon them; for the people were neither holy, nor just, nor true, nor faithful towards God, nor loving to their neighbor. The Jewish church was a mass of glittering profession, unsupported by spiritual life. Our Lord had looked into the temple, and had found the house of prayer to be a den of thieves. He condemned the Jewish church to remain a lifeless, fruitless thing; and it was so. The synagogue remained open; but its teaching became a dead form. Israel had no influence upon the age. The Jewish race became, for centuries, a withered tree: it had nothing but profession when Christ came, and that profession proved powerless to save even the holy city. Christ did not destroy the religious organization of the Jews: he left them as they were; but they withered away from the root, till the Romans came, and with the axes of his legions cleared away the fruitless trunk.

What a lesson is this to nations! Nations may make a profession, a loud profession, of religion, and yet may fail to exhibit that righteousness which exalteth a nation. Nations may be adorned with all the leafage of civilization, and art, and progress, and religion; but if there be no inner life of godliness, and no fruit unto righteousness, they will stand for a while, and then wither away.

~ Charles Spurgeon

Nations withering away! What about the nation that has turned it's back on God. In Isaiah 3, we see that one way God may bring judgment on a nation is to curse them with incompetent, ungodly leaders. Often, this is the simplest avenue of judgment: giving people what their wicked hearts desire. The terrible effect of this judgment of God, the granting of incompetent and ungodly leaders, will be certainly seen, apart from the repentance of a nation and the mercy of God.

"Woe to the wicked! It will go badly with him, For what he deserves will be done to him"

Isaiah 3:11

Thursday Thoughts

"Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 18:3

As we have been studying the book of Matthew, we have seen how he has been laying out the answer to how to enter the Kingdom of heaven. We have seen that in order to enter the Kingdom there must be repentance (Matt. 3:2, 4:17, 9:13). There must be a sense of unworthiness (Matt.5:3). There must be humility (Matt. 5:4-5) . There must be a willingness to submit obediently to the Lordship of Christ and confession and self‑sacrifice and a persistent pursuing faith (Matt. 7:21, Matt. 8:19, 10:32, 15:21-28). None of these elements are produced in the flesh. They are all the work of the Spirit of God. But they are nonetheless the elements, the constituent parts that occur in the soul that is brought to the Kingdom.

And now we come to Matthew 18 where the disciples have asked "who is the greatest in the Kingdom"? How we must weary the Lord at times. Jesus has told them that He must suffer at the hands of the scribes and the Pharisees, that He is going to die and He's given them all of that information and they still don't get it.

They're still saying, in effect, we know the Kingdom is coming and we know You're going to set it up and who is going to be the greatest in it? And they're looking at the Kingdom in its earthly definition. They were seeking self‑glory, prestige, prominence and Jesus had just been teaching them, chapter 16:24, that if any man will come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me, let him lose his life if he wants to find it. And He's been talking about self‑denial and humility all along. And they still are self‑seeking, grasping, desiring prominence. They are all about self glory!

So Jesus answers them with the picture of a little child in His arms. We are to convert to turn around and become as a child. What is a child like? A little child is humble, simple, unaffected, without hypocrisy, unambitious...that's a little child...meek. Children don't have great thoughts of personal greatness and grandeur and glory for themselves. They're not even conscious about what they wear. They get irritated when you try to dress them up. They're simple, little tender infant in Jesus' arms, so open, so without hypocrisy, so content to be held and directed and fed, so content to be dependent, so willing to submit, so unpretentious. Nothing between them and Jesus!!


Make me, O Lord, a child again, so tender, frail and small.
In self possessing nothing, in Thee possessing all.
O Savior, make me small once more that downward I may grow,
And in this heart of mine restore the faith of long ago.
With Thee may I be crucified, no longer I that lives.
O Savior, crush my sinful pride by grace which pardon gives.
Make me, O Lord, a child again, obedient to Thy call,
In self possessing nothing, in Thee possessing all. ~ Author Unknown

The Greatest Generation...

and what I found to be true having lived in my father's house.

These men, many of them boys, had grown up through the Great Depression and went on to fight in World War One. They knew the meaning of sacrifice whether it was in material possession or in blood, sweat and tears. They took responsibility for themselves and had the initiative to set a goal and see the objective through to its completion. Honor, character, and love of country was the pillow they laid their heads on every night and loyalty to duty was the call of reveille they woke to every morning. They did not brag about their service nor did they whine - they had a job to do and they did it. They came home from the war and built our country into an economic powerhouse. As children of this generation, we were taught to live within our means and were given a powerful work ethic. They were not perfect but they were a cut above. They were not focused on self - they were focused on providing for their families the security they did not have growing up.

I am grateful for my Dad's service to this country. He fought at the Battle of the Bulge and I cannot imagine what he and so many others endured. But the greatest gift he gave me was having me in church every Sunday where I came to know my Lord and Savior. Of course, had many of these men not fought, died and ultimately won, I may never had had that opportunity.

Below is the note that was written on the back of Dad's picture. It was written to his mom while he was somewhere in Belgium in 1944. I'm sure many moms received many similar notes.

Remember to thank all of our service men and women! They deserve our support!

Happy Veterans Day!

"Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends."

John 15:13

This Done In Remembrance Of Gary

My brother-in-law, Gary, turned 49 on Tuesday but sadly he and his family live in Illinois. So in honor of his birthday, Tony and I went to one of the family's favorite restaurants and had chicken fried steak (with extra gravy) to celebrate. Though, it might not have been the healthiest choice on the menu we did go with a half order and made the sacrifice of our cholesterol levels all for the little brother we love!

I thank my God every time I remember you

Philippians 1:3

Thursday Thoughts

"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me."

Psalm 23:4

Behold, how independent of outward circumstances the Holy Ghost can make the Christian! What a bright light may shine within us when it is all dark without! How firm, how happy, how calm, how peaceful we may be, when the world shakes to and fro, and the pillars of the earth are removed! Even death itself, with all its terrible influences, has no power to suspend the music of a Christian’s heart, but rather makes that music become more sweet, more clear, more heavenly, till the last kind act which death can do is to let the earthly strain melt into the heavenly chorus, the temporal joy into the eternal bliss! Let us have confidence, then, in the blessed Spirit’s power to comfort us. In thee, my God, my heart shall triumph, come what may of ills without! By thy power, O blessed Spirit, my heart shall be exceeding glad, though all things should fail me here below. ~ Charles Spurgeon

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends of those affected by the tragic events at Fort Hood today!

Happy Fall

This has been an absolutely gorgeous weekend in Houston with the lows in the 5o's and the highs in the low 70's and not a cloud in the sky!! To celebrate, Tony and I spent part of yesterday in Old Town Spring eating, shopping and buying. If there is one thing you can always count on us buying it is fudge from The Little Dutch Girl and behind that kettle corn. Of course, there were additional purchases made that you may or may not see in the pictures I've included. (It's just a shame that I couldn't look as good as the weekend! Ha! No more pics of me with the iphone - obviously it adds 10 years and 20lbs.)

It was obvious that Old Town Spring has suffered from the current economy but it was nice to see it bustling yesterday. Hopefully, the stores that are still open will have a successful Christmas season. We tried to do our part yesterday and I saw a beautiful light fixture that we might have to go back and get. :-)

The picture frame Tony bought was for his desk and he filled it with a sonogram for now. I have to confess that shopping for the baby is one of my favorite past times!

The day ended with a lovely invitation from Jeremy and Meagan to watch the Longhorns beat the Cowboys. And the Longhorns did not disappoint!! Additionally, with the time change we had an extra hour to sleep! What a wonderful weekend - I hope everyone had a beautiful fall fun weekend!

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! Psalm 150:6

Thursday Thoughts - The Scariest Reality

Saturday is Halloween. It is a time when many visit haunted houses and look to horror movies and scary stories to be frightened. So, on this Thursday before Halloween for those that enjoy their heart racing and the inability to drop off to sleep, I can’t think of anything more frightening than an eternity in the furnace of fire! Jesus preached more on hell than any other subject and yet today many churches are afraid to mention this truth much less preach it for fear of offending someone. John MacArthur does a great job on a subject that too few truly understand and appreciate.

What is this furnace of fire? What is hell? Let me give you four truths about hell ... that I think will answer that question. Number one, hell is a place of unrelieved torment. It is a place of a horrible misery. And the Bible defines it as darkness, outer darkness. That is deep pit darkness, darkness that's way out from the light, impenetrable darkness. Darkness that closes in. And it is darkness without the hope of light forever. Have you ever been in the darkness and longed for the daylight? Have you ever been in the darkness and longed for someone to turn a light on? To be in that encroaching, encompassing, moving kind of darkness and know that for all the eons of eternity, you will never see light ... is how our Lord describes hell ... unrelieved darkness forever ... with no hope of the light ... no hope of the dawn. And the Bible also says it is a fire. Now it is not a fire that we would know as fire, to burn something in this world. But fire is God's way of describing it because it is a tortuous, unrelieved kind of fire ... more terrible than any fire that we would ever know. But fire describes the torment of the damned; blackness describes the torment of the damned, no light, no light ever, ever ... no relief from the suffering, the agony and the pain, forever. And there's only two times in all of Scripture that we have any insight into how people respond to hell. The one is the Lord's parable in Luke 16 where He says the man cried out in torment and said - Cool my tongue for I'm tormented in this flame. And the other is that constant statement of our Lord there will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. The response to hell is not fun, it is weeping, that's crying, wailing, screaming and grinding of teeth in pain. That's what the Bible says. That's hell.

Secondly, it is a place of unrelieved torment for both body and soul. Soul being the inner part. When a person dies, their soul goes out of the presence of God, into the torment of hell. It may not be the full final lake of fire that comes after the judgment in the great white throne, for that needs a transcendent body to endure it, but it is a torment just as well as illustrated by the rich man who in hell was tormented. When a person dies now, their soul descends into that torment. In the future, there will be a resurrection of the bodies of the damned; they will be given a transcendent body that will then go into a lake of fire. It will be a body not like the body we have now. It will be a very different one. They will be resurrected just like we will, as Christians. We will be resurrected because this body could never live eternally in heaven, right? We have to have a transcendent body, a glorified body, a different body, and so do the damned. And they will be raised, John 5, they will be raised in new bodies for the single purpose of being punished forever in those bodies. That's what the Bible says ... tormented forever. They have to have a body to fit that eternal torment

And that's why Jesus in Matthew 10:28 said, "Fear not them that can destroy the body, but fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." You see, hell is soul and body. Some people think it's just bad memories. No, it isn't just bad memories. It isn't just the inner thinking processes; it is that body as well. Transcendent, eternal bodies, greater than anything we have on this earth, are going to be given to the damned so that they can suffer in those bodies forever. And that's the only reason that they'll have those bodies. With the present body, man couldn't endure hell. You ... the body that we have now would be consumed in a moment. So as God fits the redeemed with new bodies for heaven, He fits the damned with new bodies for hell.
We know a little about that ... from two things the Lord said. He said, first of all, the worm dieth not. Now what did He mean by that? When a body goes into the grave and to decay, worms descend into that body and they begin to consume that body and the worms will die when the food is gone. So once the body is consumed, the worms die. But in hell, the worms never die because the body, though it is continually being consumed, is never consumed. So the worm never dies. In other words, the Lord was saying the unrelieved torment of body goes on and on. And it says also, the fire is not quenched. Now a fire always goes out when the fuel is gone. But the fuel will never be gone, though the burning goes on, the fuel is never consumed. And so you have unrelieved torment of body and soul.

And that brings me to the third thought, you have in hell - a place of relieved torment of body and soul in varying degrees ... in varying degrees. In other words, for some people, hell will be worse than others. For all who are there, it will be horrible, it will be ultimate suffering, there will be no relief for that ... but there will be even more severe degrees of suffering for some. It says in Hebrews 10, "Of how much more severe punishment shall they be thought worthy who have trodden underfoot the Son of God and counted the blood of the covenant an unholy thing." People who have stepped on Jesus Christ, who have rejected his cross, will know a greater hell than those who have not. There will be degrees, just as there will be degrees of reward in Heaven.

We saw that, also, I think, in Matthew chapter 11, when it said, "It will be more tolerable for Sodom than for you." In other words, it's only relative, it isn't going to be tolerable for anyone, but it will appear to be more tolerable for them than for you because of what you have experienced. You had Jesus Christ in your city, they didn't. You rejected Him with more light; therefore hell will be more severe for you.

And then you have, of course, that incredible parable in Luke 12 where the Lord says, "To the servant who knew and didn't do right, many stripes. To the servant who didn't know and didn't do right, a few stripes." So, hell will be unrelieved torment of body in soul in varying degrees. But John Gerstner says, "Hell will have such severe degrees that a sinner, were he able, would give the whole world if his sins could be one less."

And fourthly, hell is a place of unrelieved torment for body and soul in varying degrees endlessly... endlessly. The worm never dies, the fire never goes out, the light never breaks, the sweet relief of death never comes, endlessly. The only reason or the only way in which we in this life can even make it through trials and pain and suffering and disease is because we believe there will be an end to it. But they won't have that. You can imagine the resultant insanity that will come. And you say - Are you sure it's everlasting? It's just as everlasting as heaven is because in the same verse, the Lord used the same terms ...Matthew 25:46, "These shall go away into everlasting punishment, the righteous into everlasting life." Whatever everlasting life is in terms of its length, so is everlasting punishment. That's hell.

God never prepared it for people. He prepared it for the devil and his angels ... but people choose to go there. Inconceivable misery ... some people have been in this kind of torment in their souls waiting for that body for thousands of years and they're no closer to the end then they were when they began. No wonder Jesus had to teach this doctrine.

You say - Well, how do you avoid hell? You avoid hell only by the ... receiving of Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. If you don't appropriate the kingdom, you see, if you don't take the treasure, if you don't purchase the pearl of great price, there's no way out.

"So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matthew 13:49-50

Fun Fall Memories...

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words...

One day I found two pumpkin seeds.
I planted one and pulled the weeds.
It sprouted roots and a big, long vine.
A pumpkin grew; I called it mine.
The pumpkin was quite round and fat.
(I really am quite proud of that.)
But there is something I'll admit
That has me worried just a bit.
I ate the other seed, you see.
Now will it grow inside of me?

(I'm so relieved since I have found
That pumpkins only grow in the ground!)

October, 1984


Brothers gotta carve!


Jeremy (Batman), Michael Smith, Josh (Zorro)

October, 1984, Harvest Festival, Champion Forest Baptist Church

And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.

Luke 10:2

Thursday Thoughts

Today in Bible study we covered the thirteenth chapter of Matthew. It is the chapter in which you will find seven parables that Jesus teaches. The parables were a way of "encoding" God's message so the spiritually sensitive could understand, but the hardened would merely hear a story without heaping up additional condemnation for rejecting God's Word. I want to concentrate on the seventh - the parable of the dragnet.

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind; and when it was filled, they drew it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. Matthew 13: 47-48

The kingdom of heaven is like a net ... and you can see the vividness of this imagery. That net moves through the world. It is invisible to those around who can't yet see it. And if perchance it touches the back of a fish, the fish simply flits a little further ahead and enjoys the freedom he thinks is his permanently. And men live in this world imagining themselves to be free, moving about, fulfilling their own desires, going here and going there as they will, with little knowledge that the net comes closer and closer and closer. People float about in the liberty of the wide-deep sea of life, not knowing the invisible lines of judgment move closer and closer and closer. And each time they are touched by it, they move a little further away. And they're touched again and they move a little further away. And finally they've moved one time and they've hit it on the other side because it's moving toward the shore and then wildly the fish may dart for the sea only to be caught again in the same net ... finally to be dragged in the shore and the last throws of a flailing and flipping enter into a silent death. And that's how it is. Men may not perceive the kingdom, they may not see God moving in the world, but He is moving. And men very often when touched by the gospel of Jesus Christ, or threatened by the threat of judgment, dart into the freedom they think is ahead of them but sooner or later they run right back into the same net because there's no freedom there. And they are inexorably moving toward inevitable judgment.

"So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matthew 13:49-50

Look at verse 49, "So shall it be at the end of the age." When man's day is over and Jesus returns to set up His glorious kingdom, then comes the judgment. The angels are the separators, just as we saw in verse 41, just as we see in Matthew 24; the angels come with the Lord to act out judgment. Just as we see in Matthew 25, just as we see repeatedly in Revelation, particularly chapter 14. The angels are the agents of God's judgment. So while the kingdom may, for a while, tolerate good and evil growing together, the separation is moving closer and closer all the time.

Jesus spoke of this same thing in Matthew chapter 25 when He said in verse 31, "The Son of man shall come in His glory and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit on the throne of His glory." And what will He do when He comes? It says, "And before Him shall He gather all the nations and He shall separate one from another. Separation. "And He'll say to them, on His right hand, Come ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. And He'll say to them on the left hand, Depart from Me, ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels."

And Jesus said in John chapter 5 that there's coming a resurrection of all men, some to the resurrection of life and some to the resurrection of damnation. There will be a final separation, an eternal destiny will be determined for every soul that has ever lived on the face of the earth.

The Bible also says God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. The Bible says that He is not willing that any should perish. The Bible says that God our Savior will have all men to be saved. Jesus wept over Jerusalem and said - 0 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how oft I would have gathered thee as a hen gathereth her brood, but you would not. You will not come unto Me, He said pensively, that you might have eternal life. His heart of compassion is one that warns because He loves.

It goes back to Matthew 9:38. "Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest." Jesus saw the world as a harvest moving to judgment, He saw that God would come and put that sickle in the harvest. And He said - I ... pray with Me that the Father would send forth laborers, send forth people into His harvest to warn men. And so in chapter 10 He called the disciples, didn't He? And in chapters 11 and 12, He trained and prepared the disciples. And in chapter 13, He taught the disciples. And now He says - Are you ready to go out and be those warners in the harvest?

"Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest."

Thank You that we can be a part of the kingdom. Thank you, Lord, that after the announcement of judgment, there was always the message of grace, "Come unto Me all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I'll give you rest." "He that doeth the will of My Father, the same is My brother and sister, and mother." Always the message of grace.

And so, Lord, to this rejecting world, we must preach the message of judgment because they too have rejected the King, but for some, their hearts are opened to do Your will to come for rest. And I would ask, Lord, that if there are any who are reading this and do not know Jesus Christ, that today they might open their hearts to Him that they might be translated, as Paul put it to the Colossians, from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of His dear Son. May they believe the gospel and repent, turning from their sin in sorrow and brokenness. And may they enter the kingdom to walk forever with the King. Amen.

Texas 16 Oklahoma 13

Go Horns!!!!!

A win is a win no matter how ugly!!