Thursday, November 25, 2010

I'm Thankful For Brushes and Brooms

For Christmas 1991, our oldest daughter, Melissa, received this gift from her Grandma and Grandpa Crawford:

Precious Moments Through the Year Stories by V. Gilbert Beers and Samuel J. Butcher

She was, and still is, Daddy's Precious Moments Girl in every way. Not long after that we had three in our quiver--Melissa, Malachi, and Cherith.

On Thanksgiving 1992, and on every Thanksgiving Day since then, I have read this poem from her book before dinner.

"I heard Mom say as she scrubbed today,
'I'm thankful for brushes and brooms.
I'm glad to clean my cozy house
That's filled with cheerful rooms.'

I heard Mom say at the washing machine,
'I'm thankful for dirty clothes.
I'm glad that I have a healthy child
Who can play each day she grows.'

I heard Mom say at the sink tonight,
'I'm thankful for dirty dishes.
I'm glad we filled our plates with food
Instead of empty wishes.'

I heard Mom say in her prayers tonight,
'I'm thankful for problems today.
If life never got a little bit rough,
I might forget to pray.' "

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

When Clouds Are Thick and Ominous, or A Real View of a Beautiful Church On a Dark, Windy Day

Blankets of clouds loomed
darkly above this church as
light lavished below.

Dismally covered,
cheerfully radiating
rays of resistance.

Who knows how and when the seeds of the Gospel that are planted will grow?

It can be so easy to hold back in sharing the Gospel because of fears, preconceived ideas, or perceived failures of the past. This testimony is an encouragement to always share the Gospel with everyone, everywhere.

"Cast your bread upon the waters,
for you will find it after many days.
Give a portion to seven, or even to eight,
for you know not what disaster may happen on earth.
If the clouds are full of rain,
they empty themselves on the earth,
and if a tree falls to the south or to the north,
in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie.
He who observes the wind will not sow,
and he who regards the clouds will not reap.

As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good." Ecclesiastes 11:1-6

Friday, November 12, 2010

Jesus can always change people...

"God used a battering ram to kick down the door of my mother's heart and drag her to Jesus. And she has loved him ever since and is loving him now, and is beholding his glory...Sinners are always savable."--Heath Lambert

When it comes to loved ones headed for destruction, Jesus is not a gentleman who stands by and waits for something to happen, he is a rescuer who earnestly intervenes...

Sunday, November 7, 2010

100 Reasons to Give Thanks

Stop by Bible Baptist Church for an amazing series on thankfulness. Videos of the messages will be available at their website, as well.

And you're welcome to leave your reasons to give thanks in the comments here.

It will be wonderful if we can record 100 personal expressions of gratitude here during this month of thankfulness...