Raining!

Weather is a great metaphor for life - sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad, and there's nothing much you can do about it but carry an umbrella.

~Terri Guillemets

Read more at Barefootpreachr.org

Holy Man

Word spread across the countryside about the wise Holy Man who lived in a small house atop the mountain. A man from the village decided to make the long and difficult journey to visit him. When he arrived at the house, he saw an old servant inside who greeting him at the door. “I would like to see the wise Holy Man,” he said to the servant. The servant smiled and led him inside. As they walked through the house, the man from the village looked eagerly around the house, anticipating his encounter with the Holy Man. Before he knew it, he had been led to the back door and escorted outside. He stopped and turned to the servant, “But I want to see the Holy Man!”

“You already have,” said the old man. “Everyone you may meet in life, even if they appear plain and insignificant… see each of them as a wise Holy Man. If you do this, then whatever problem you brought here today will be solved.”

What is the message of this story for you?

• “Anticipation of something may be greater than the thing itself. Anticipation of looks is always a mistake.”
• “You can’t judge a book by its cover.”
• “We see ourselves in everyone we meet.”
• “The man in the story got lost looking for a deep solution to his problem, when all along the answer was right on the surface.”

What do YOU see?

“A wise man learns more from a fool than the fool from the wise man.”

The Bigamist Amongst Us

There was a rich merchant who had 4 wives. He loved the 4th wife the most and adorned her with rich robes and treated her to delicacies. He took great care of her and gave her nothing but the best.

He also loved the 3rd wife very much. He's very proud of her and always wanted to show off her to his friends. However, the merchant is always in great fear that she might run away with some other men.

He too, loved his 2nd wife. She is a very considerate person, always patient and in fact is the merchant's confidante. Whenever the merchant faced some problems, he always turned to his 2nd wife and she would always help him out and tide him through difficult times.

Now, the merchant's 1st wife is a very loyal partner and has made great contributions in maintaining his wealth and business as well as taking care of the household. However, the merchant did not love the first wife and although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her.

One day, the merchant fell ill. Before long, he knew that he was going to die soon. He thought of his luxurious life and told himself, "Now I have 4 wives with me. But when I die, I'll be alone. How lonely I'll be!"

Thus, he asked the 4th wife, "I loved you most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No way!" replied the 4th wife and she walked away without another word.


Prayer Beads
The answer cut like a sharp knife right into the merchant's heart. The sad merchant then asked the 3rd wife, "I have loved you so much for all my life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?" "No!" replied the 3rd wife. "Life is so good over here! I'm going to remarry when you die!" The merchant's heart sank and turned cold.

He then asked the 2nd wife, "I always turned to you for help and you've always helped me out. Now I need your help again. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?" "I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time!" replied the 2nd wife. "At the very most, I can only send you to your grave." The answer came like a bolt of thunder and the merchant was devastated.

Then a voice called out: "I'll leave with you. I'll follow you no matter where you go." The merchant looked up and there was his first wife. She was so skinny, almost like she suffered from malnutrition. Greatly grieved, the merchant said, "I should have taken much better care of you while I could have!”

Actually, we all have 4 wives in our lives:

a. The 4th wife is our body. No matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it'll leave us when we die.
b. Our 3rd wife? Our possessions, status and wealth. When we die, they all go to others.
c. The 2nd wife is our family and friends. No matter how close they had been there for us when we're alive, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.
d. The 1st wife is in fact our soul, often neglected in our pursuit of material, wealth and sensual pleasure.
Guess what? It is actually the only thing that follows us wherever we go. Perhaps it's a good idea to cultivate and strengthen it now rather than to wait until we're on our deathbed to lament.

Matthew 6:24-34

24“No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

25“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?27And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?28And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, 29yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. 30But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?31Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34“So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

Keep on Kickin’ On!

I’m not a big fan of slimy things. This includes lizards of any kind ~ just ask my kids how fast I can run if one of those show up while I’m cleaning in the garage (or maybe the aversion to the garage cleaning came first?). I put frogs, snails, worms, snakes and a whole bunch of other creatures into that category of “slimy” things.

Truthfully though, I have no idea if they are slimy at all! I’m just going by the way they look and the fact they are in a class of animal species that has freaked me out since 9th grade Biology and we had to dissect a frog. Turned out, that frog may have been dead, but he was going to get the last laugh. After donning all sorts of protective gear and practically bribing a lab partner to do the actual slicing, when the first cut was made that frog let loose of his bodily fluid in a stream meant to soak a heavy-duty cello sponge! And guess who was standing in the middle of that stream.

Oh well. Those days are gone and can’t be relived (except in my own little mind) so maybe there is something I can learn from the little fellas. In fact, I kinda like the attitude of one in this parable.

There were two frogs that had become bored with life in the River Torrens, so they decided to go on an adventure to a neighboring dairy farm.

There they found a bucket of lovely cream, and decided it would be a wonderful experience to wallow in it. They hopped in. The first licked his lips with delight, and the two swam around with momentary joy. But cream is much thicker than water, and soon the frogs tired. It was time to get out and return to the Torrens.

The first frog kicked and kicked and kicked, but the cream was thick, and he couldn’t get out the bucket. Soon he gave up, licked his lips, and drowned in the bucket of cream.

The second frog was far more determined. He kicked and kicked and kicked and kicked some more. Eventually the cream turned to butter, and he jumped out of the bucket and returned to the River Torrens.

Attitude does make a difference to the outcomes of our lives. So, don’t give up on life ~ keep on kickin’ on!

Find more at: barefootpreachr.org

Finding Purpose

"A great writer once said, that a great book requires a great theme. So does a great life. An endless stream of books are meaningless and will not last as great literature, because they do not have a great theme.

So it is with people. All too much in human history is wasted and meaningless because there is no great theme, no great purpose in life.

Men and women have a deep hunger in life for meaning and purpose, but so often they are afraid to let go of a self-centered ego. To have a great theme in life involves taking a risk of moving beyond the narrow limitations of myself and discovering our true self where Jesus is at the center: nurturing, healing and empowering us to be men and women for others. Here is our great theme, our meaning and purpose." ~ Harry Huxhold

Have you found your purpose in life or are you still looking? Does your life have meaning? These are the questions we each struggle with throughout our lives without regard for age or financial wealth, talents or social position.

What a glorious day it is when we can find our center and finally live a life of meaning and purpose!

Simple living not necessarily simple

A UMNS Report
By Barbara Dunlap-Berg* 1:00 P.M. EST Nov. 19, 2010

John Wesley espoused three simple rules: Do no harm, do good and stay in love with God.

Though these rules sound — and are — incredibly simple, actually practicing them is anything but easy.

“I have a hunger for us to return to some of the original values and lifestyles of the early church and the early Methodist movement,” the Rev. Ryan Wieland, 28, said. He serves Ridley Park United Methodist Church in Pennsylvania.

He cited Acts 2:45 (The Message). “They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person’s need was met.”

Recently, United Methodist Communications asked 4,000 United Methodists how they felt about simple living, using the definition: “a lifestyle characterized by consuming only that which is required to sustain life.”

More than 500 people, both laity and clergy, answered the survey.

Living simply “is necessary for the survival of the planet and humankind, physically and spiritually,” the Rev. Nick Keeney, 31, wrote. He serves Dorranceton United Methodist Church in Kingston, Pa.

Another respondent said mission experiences prove eye opening. “I meet in my mission work persons to whom our surplus represents unimagined riches. Such an imbalance bothers me.”

The Rev. Douglas Dean, 64, of Faith United Methodist Church, Oregon, Ohio, agreed. “The ‘simple lifestyle’ is a part of the equation for a ‘balanced life,’” he said.

Different things to different people
For some, living simply offers an opportunity to strengthen one’s spirituality. Others choose this lifestyle to improve their health and alleviate stress, to have more “quality time” with loved ones, to reduce their personal ecological footprint or to save money. Socio-political goals such as conservation, social justice, ethnic diversity and sustainable development motivate some people.

However, talking and actually putting words into practice are two different things.

“In theory, I believe that living simply is what my faith requires, but in fact I don’t make it a priority,” a respondent admitted.

Another commented, “I try to reduce my usage of natural resources and to be more self-sufficient. But I use much more than is really needed to sustain life.”

Several noted that the U.S. infrastructure largely depends on locked-in resource-usage patterns.

“Alternatives to electricity, water, natural-gas usage and garbage recycling are seldom available in ways that have a measurable overall impact,” the Rev. Pat Dunbar, 52, said. She serves Dawsonville (Ga.) United Methodist Church.

“While I may be interested in a simple lifestyle,” she continued, “it is a fight against the very business and government forces we put in place.”

Continued at the following link: http://barefootpreachr.org/2011/01/10/simple-living-not-necessarily-simple-umc-org/

What’s in YOUR tupperware?

Lately I have been feeling overwhelmed with all my “to-do” stuff so I decided I needed a break from doing what I’ve been doing and I would do something else. I thought it might be a good idea to clean the pantry and get organized. Looking into the pantry, I figured it might be a half-hour to 45 minute diversion from my crazy routine.

The first step to getting myself organized was to figure out what needed to be thrown away. That was easy. There was nothing that needed to be thrown away since my hubby and college-age son had already perused the pantry and that was why it needed to be organized. This step took me only one minute. It looked like I would have enough time to brew myself a cup of tea when I was through!

Okay, next step. I thought it would be helpful to put all the items I use for baking on one shelf, all the canned goods on another shelf in rows according to to size and dates they would expire, all of the snack foods on another shelf, and so on … and so on. I began pulling these things out of the pantry and making little stacks and piles. Some of the piles were getting a bit larger than others, but two shelves were cleaned off so I could begin putting things away. Fifteen minutes into this step I began to realize that this was not as easy as step one in my plan.

First of all, not all of the baking goods would fit on one shelf. Guess I would have a few “smaller” steps to create that perfect fit. (Now this is where I started to get into real trouble.) In my mind’s eye I had a vision of what my home, pantry and kitchen looked like when my children where very young. Everything in my kitchen was color coded with those wonderful Tupperware Modular Mates, the childrens toys all fit into the largest containers and were stacked perfectly when not in use. Even the bathroom toilet tissue, q-tips, cotton balls and feminine products were in color coded containers and organized. Oh, it was heaven!

It was time to sort the tupperware cabinet and gather my supplies. I dove in. I evaluated my options. I began to sort through the array of pieces and parts. Then I began to try to fit the pieces and parts together with the assortment of items from the pantry. Things were not going the way I had planned. In fact, I felt like I was putting together a giant jigsaw puzzle with no edge pieces and all in black and white. This might take a little longer than I had expected.

Forty-five minutes (yes, I know that was the planned time allotment, but I was on a roll!) into the moving, stacking, sorting, and piecing together of bowls, modular mates, flour, cereal, and bagged pretzels – I conceded defeat of the battle. The pantry has won for the time being while I step back and regroup my defenses.

In the meantime, I had a bit of a mess to clean up. First, the food stuffs since the cats in the household were taking a particular interest in the various bags of chips and boxes of open cereal. I must admit it did not take as long to throw (I mean, place) the food back into the pantry as it did to take it out and sort it in the first place. It was important to get everything balanced correctly though so as to not have anything fall on hubby’s head when he opens the door to rummage for his evening snack tonight. Having created a perfect balance in the pantry, I moved on to my final step in this organization project – returning the tupperware pieces and parts back into the cabinet from whence they came.

Remember the jigsaw puzzle? That was simple compared to this task!

It seems that while I was putting the pantry into perfect balance, those pieces and parts had been multiplying and rearranging themselves. Now that it was time to go back into that cabinet there were twice as much as what had come out! Although it took several minutes, let’s say, 40 minutes give or take 2, I won this battle. Everything went back into the cabinet and life is once again restored to a place of harmony and perfect balance!

Next time I think it’s a good idea to organize the pantry I think it’s the hubby’s turn to do it!

... we all fall down!

As I have been preparing for tonight’s Ash Wednesday service at the church I recalled this treasured nursery rhyme: Ring around the roses, pockets full of posies, ashes to ashes we all fall down! I remember my children holding hands and reaching out to anyone close enough to catch within their circle as they skipped and sang this song before tumbling to the ground into a laughing, giggling pile of joy. It did not matter what age you were, it seemed you were qualified to play this game. Next to “Hide and go seek” this was my children’s favorite game to play with every member of the family. Through the years I have always been surprised by how much I have learned from my children and this simple little game is another example.
There have been several lessons I learned from playing this game with my children and their friends. I learned that we have a lot more fun when we all play together. I learned that laughing at myself was more enjoyable than laughing at others. I also learned that the ground was just a little further to fall to for some of us and it hurt when I landed!

Isn’t that just like life? It seems the higher, the bigger, and the more important or more favored we think we are, life has a way of bringing us back to the basics. And sometimes it hurts when we land. Sometimes it’s our ego, sometimes it’s our pride, sometimes it’s our dignity, but it all hurts. I also learned that it was harder to get up after falling down for some of us and we need a helping hand or an encouraging word from our friends to help us get back into the game.

Today is Ash Wednesday in the Christian church. It is a time for each of us to participate in the call to repentance and reconciliation with God and with our neighbors. We use ashes as a physical sign of our own mortality and remorse for the things we’ve done that have hurt the people around us. Participation in a service of the Imposition of Ashes can be a powerful experience that allows us to reach for the hand of a friend whether it is for help in picking ourselves up or lifting someone else.

I recently read a comment that said “It's not how we fall but how we get up that matters most. I'm still working on the getting up part.” Can I give you a hand?

Joy amidst the Mourning

Have you ever noticed how life turns you around, spins you upside down, throws you up and then dumps you on the ground? And in those moments of concern, grief, and anxiety - you find yourself occasionally smiling, or laughing out loud, or possibly having a downright belly-aching, heartfelt guffaw! Makes me think of roller coasters!

Personally, I love roller coasters. Ones that take me higher in the air and faster than I would even dare to dream about going on my own. I like the feeling of not being in control, I like knowing I'm not alone on my wild ride, and I like knowing someone else is in control.

This is the way life has been for me - for us - our family. In the midst of celebrating Stephanie's wedding, we cried and remembered Matthew's absence in our celebrations. But we found ways for each of us to celebrate his presence in our hearts and in our lives, because he truly is with us everyday. Not a day goes by where we don't think about him and miss his smile or quiet presence. Yet, I am so grateful to have my memories of Matthew and to be able to celebrate the milestones and wonderful moments we are given in life today.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." - Jeremiah 29:11-13

Small People, Great Rewards

It's been a little while since I posted, but found this story and wanted to share it with you. Be blessed and be a blessing!

Once upon a time, in a strange and lovely place where some people
go once they've been rid of everything flesh, an elderly woman
approached a young man hunched over a huge and rather grand book.

She noticed, first of all, that there was a timeless quality
about the man's beauty--for, though of the male persuasion, he
was, indeed, quite beautiful beyond anything she had seen before
or since. He also was ignoring her, and even when she approached
so close as to cast a shadow over his work (though in the
brilliance of where she was, shadows of any kind were not at all
allowed), the beautiful man remained intent on his work, his
long, artfully shaped nose just inches from the printed page.

"Hello?" She ventured timidly. "Hello. Uh, they sent me here."
Receiving no response, she tried again. "Is this the right
place?"

"That depends," the beautiful man said without bothering to look
up.

Gaining confidence, the woman explained, "They said, 'See the one
at the table--with the book. Malaki.' Are you Malaki?"

Without changing his stooped posture one little bit, the young
man glanced up at the woman and permitted a trace of a smile to
toy with the corners of his pursed lips. "In person," he declared
with every measure of importance at his disposal.

"I don't get it," the woman said, scratching her head through
what was left of her thinning hair. "Wasn't the last guy named
Malaki?" She screwed her face into the shape of a question mark
as she struggled to gain foothold in an understanding of this
strange and magical place.

"Oh, we're all named Malaki," Malaki said. "It's generic--like
pharaoh, or Kleenex."

His explanation brought her no closer to understanding, and deep
in the pit of her stomach the woman felt an old and dreaded
twinge of homesickness--that queasy sensation of being somewhere
she didn't belong, set adrift from a place she would rather be.
With a long and wearied sigh she said, "Look, I'm trying to find
somebody, and they told me you could help."

Malaki drew himself up to his full height--a height that towered
over the elderly woman. He inhaled deeply, as if filling his
lungs with every bit of importance his office bestowed on him. "I
am the Keeper of the Book of Life. In this book," he ran his
large hands lovingly over the cream-colored pages before him,
"are the names of every person who has given his heart and soul
to Jesus Christ." With that declaration, Malaki leaned forward,
his face close to the woman's, expecting her to be thoroughly and
breathtakingly impressed.

"Here's the thing," she began, dismissing his grandiloquence
with a shrug, "my husband died twenty years ago. He was a
disciple of Jesus, but not a very important one. Nobody ever knew
anything about him; he didn't make any of the written accounts.
So I don't know if he would even be in your book."

"Oh my," answered Malaki quickly, "in that case I can guarantee
he is in the book. But, ahem," he sniffed, "are you?"

"I did resist for a long time," she confessed. "But just before I
died, I believed in Jesus and gave Him my life."

"Just under the wire, huh?" Malaki smirked.

"Now I'm looking for my husband--for old time's sake--you know how
it is." She winked.

Malaki glanced back down at his work, embarrassed. "Well,
actually, I don't."

The woman leaned over the small, ornate desk. There was urgency
in her voice when she said, "Could you tell me where he is? His
name is James son of--"

Suddenly Malaki's countenance lit up, and for the first time a
broad grin spread across his face, making it even more beautiful
than before. "You don't mean the James? Son of Alphaeus? You're
kidding!"

"You mean you know him?"

"Know Him! Why, he's one of our leading citizens! Everybody
knows James son of Alphaeus."

The woman found this difficult to believe. Her husband had been a
good man, but thoroughly and irrefutably ordinary. There were
times on market day that she had struggled in vain to locate
James--only to be later informed that he had been right there in
front of her. Her good husband had been glaringly unremarkable.
Surely Malaki was thinking of someone else. "Wait a minute," she
said, "short guy, dark curly hair."

Nodding, Malaki said, "Sure. I even know which page he's on." He
quickly flipped backward through the book with his delicate
fingers, stopping on one of the first pages of the huge volume.
With an expansive gesture, Malaki pointed his long, slender index
finger to one entry near the top of the page.

The woman leaned over the table. "Five stars?" She gasped.

"Our highest rating," Malaki said, his face beaming with pride.

"But, he was just another guy. Very ordinary."

"Precisely!"

She was now utterly confused. "If that's the case, how do the
real biggies live up here? Guys like Moses, Peter, John."

Malaki shrugged. "Just about like everyone else."

"I can't figure this."

"Well, it's not really part of my job description," he sniffed,
"but I'll try to explain as best I can. There are no favorites in
heaven, you see. God loves all who take their residence here.
However, the Father does have a rewards system."

"Rewards?"

"No one can buy their way into heaven. But God's children are
apportioned talents and what they accomplish with those talents
in His name is remembered by the Father. He rewards the diligent
works of everyone belonging to Him."

"Then, as I said," the woman sputtered, "the apostle Peter must
have the finest accommodations."

"No, not necessarily." Malaki leaned back into the simple yet
elegant chair that sat behind his table. "Peter received so many
rewards while on earth: he was a respected leader; a writer,
whose teachings will live on till the very end of time. But the
Father has a soft spot in His heart for the servant who receives
no glory during his earthly life. He has a very special love for
those who keep plugging away even when no one notices their
labors." He looked at the elderly woman standing at the other
side of the table. "Tell me, what did James do while he was 'down
there'?"

"Oh," she sighed, "he was kind of forgotten. He always ended up
doing the jobs no one else would. Taking out the trash. Sweeping
the church floor. Visiting with the beggars."

"And he didn't receive much thanks for his work, did he?"

"Of course not!" The woman said with some anger as she recalled
the disappointing anonymity in which her husband served. "No one
paid him any mind. Nobody even knew anything about it."

"But he kept on, didn't he," Malaki said patiently. "He kept on
with it, never shirking from even the most menial task."

The woman shrugged, "Someone had to do it."

"So James didn't receive much glory while he was on earth?"

"Glory?" She sputtered. "They forgot he was even around!"

Malaki rose and leaned toward the distraught woman. With all of
his persuasive power he reassured her. "God didn't. He didn't
forget. And now James has been paid in full. He now has all the
glory that others received while they were on earth. The
difference is, their glory came from men. James' glory is from
the Father--in person."

Calming, the woman now realized that she was in a place
remarkably dissimilar to earth--a place where a different set of
rules and consequences were in place. Smiling, she said, "It
sounds as if my husband has finally made a name for himself."

"Oh, he made his name on earth. Now he is reaping the reward."

"But please," she said insistently, "tell me: Where is James?"

"Well now, it would be my pleasure to take you there myself," he
said, closing the book. "His palace isn't far. Besides, I'd like
to be there when he receives his finest reward."

"What's that?"

"Why, you, of course!" Malaki grinned and took her by the arm.
"Twenty years ago he didn't know if he'd ever see you again. And
now he will--for eternity."

And the two--one ancient and one newly young again--moved deeper
into the brilliance of a place where there is no time, no sorrow
or pain. A place where there is only a joyful convocation of
those gathered around the throne--a throne surrounded by the
blinding glitter of earth-earned crowns happily offered in praise
to the One who never forgets the work of His beloved.

"What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done." - Matthew 16:26-27

Communication is essential

I enjoy fables. Recently I have been rereading the book "Friedman's Fables" by Edwin H. Friedman. This is one of those little treasures that you hear of from someone and pick up to read at your leisure, then find yourself returning to over and over again.

Today I reread this story:
AN AMERICAN HOLLY

"There was a certain holly tree whose owner, when it was very young, planted it close to the foundation of his house to shelter the tree from the icy blasts of winter. He had done right. For it is the way of young, broad-leafed evergreens to lose their vital moisture to the evaporation of winter winds.

As time went by, however, the holly grew and soon found itself competing with that which had protected it during early life. The owner, therefore, decided to let the plant have more room. Carefully, early one spring, he dug up the sprouting tree and replanted it some distance away, so that it could branch out in all directions. As with the initial planting, the owner did everything with care;, the roots were embalmed in a big ball of earth, a moat of mud surrounded the new site to keep the rainwater from running away, a deep protective blanket of the finest mulch covered the area about the slowly thickening trunk, and fertilizer, again only the finest grade, was liberally applied.

But all did not go well, despite the best intentions and the kindest care. The holly began to lose its leaves. Some were lost every year, of course, but others had always blossomed to take their place. This time the dying leaves were not replenished. Something different was at work.

Perplexed by this unexpected turn of events, the owner gave his tree more care. He borrowed some books from the library to see what he could learn. He wrote to garden experts in the newspapers. Perhaps some blight or other noxious influence had come into the area, though he had read no warnings. He frequented the best garden shops and asked old-timers what they did on such occasions.

Every question brought an answer;every question acquired more than one answer, if asked more than one time. And with each new suggestion, tale, or remedy he heard, the owner hurried back and tried anew. But nothing worked.

Each morning when the owner awoke he found more leaves had fallen to the ground. Each week another branch was dead. Should these be allowed to remain on the trunk? Can life flow again through such hardened wood? Or does the dead decay and add decay to the living nearby?"

I'm going to stop here now and ask you to reflect on this fable with me. In some ways, I see this piece as a story of life and death. Life for the holly prepared by the garden's owner. Death by the transplant of a thriving tree. In another way I see the gospel of Christ reflected in the story and even the history of the church.

I wonder, what do you see?

On Being a Wii

For the past few years I have been hinting to my hubby that I would like to have a Wii game system. I've rationalized this desire with arguments like, "I could get in shape with it, they have a great fitness program!" Another one I tried was, "We could go dancing, bowling, or have a date night right here at home!Think about all the money you could save!" I've also played the "pity me" angle, "I don't ask for much and after all it is my birthday (Christmas, anniversary, etc.)" So far, none of these arguments have been successful and I still don't have my own Wii game system. My arguments for this new toy may have come to a halt after a message was shared today during the memorial service at UMC Annual Conference.

What I heard was, "I am not a "me" I am a "we". I am made up of a part of everyone who has touched my life or whose life I have touched." As I reflected on that statement, my mind could not help but think of all of the people who have touched my life and influenced me to be the person I am becoming. In the same way, my mind wandered to the scores of people who I have come into contact with and been privileged to leave my fingerprint on their lives. The next thought that jumped into my mind as I listened to the names being read of the clergy and laity that had served the Methodist Church so faithfully was, "Have I lived my life following Jesus' example?" Is there any way we can measure that example?

John Wesley is oft times quoted as saying, "Do all the good you can, By all the means you can, In all the ways you can, In all the places you can, At all the times you can, To all the people you can, As long as ever you can." As an example of accountability in the Methodist Church, maybe this is one way we can use to measure ourselves and the way we have touched another person's life. I for one intend to think how a word, a smile, a touch, can leave a fingerprint on someone's life. Maybe then I will become more aware of the fingerprints that are being left on my life and the loving example's God is sharing with me each day as I continue to become more of who "We" are called to be, instead of trying to be more "me".

"Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us." - Romans 12:4-6a

Psalm 40

Tomorrow is a tough day for my family, for me. It is the 3rd anniversary of Matthew's death. Each day memories are a part of my life, but on certain days, like tomorrow, I know that the memories will pierce my mind and soul like slivers of glass shredding my flesh.

Tomorrow is also a day of joy and celebration for my family and for me. It is another anniversary - the 3rd anniversary of the church's affirmation of my call to pastoral ministry. It was on this date that we removed our son from life support and let him fully return to his Heavenly Father and on that same day God began a new life in me and each member of our family.

I praise God each day for the time we were given with our son. I will be in mourning for years to come, a part of me is missing and there is no amount of mourning that will replace that missing part. Yet, God hears my cries and is faithful in our distress.

Praise God! Praise God! Praise God!

1 I waited patiently for the LORD;
he turned to me and heard my cry.

2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.

3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear
and put their trust in the LORD.

4 Blessed is the man
who makes the LORD his trust,
who does not look to the proud,
to those who turn aside to false gods.

5 Many, O LORD my God,
are the wonders you have done.
The things you planned for us
no one can recount to you;
were I to speak and tell of them,
they would be too many to declare.

6 Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but my ears you have pierced;
burnt offerings and sin offerings
you did not require.

7 Then I said, "Here I am, I have come—
it is written about me in the scroll.

8 I desire to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart."

9 I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;
I do not seal my lips,
as you know, O LORD.

10 I do not hide your righteousness in my heart;
I speak of your faithfulness and salvation.
I do not conceal your love and your truth
from the great assembly.

11 Do not withhold your mercy from me, O LORD;
may your love and your truth always protect me.

12 For troubles without number surround me;
my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart fails within me.

13 Be pleased, O LORD, to save me;
O LORD, come quickly to help me.

14 May all who seek to take my life
be put to shame and confusion;
may all who desire my ruin
be turned back in disgrace.

15 May those who say to me, "Aha! Aha!"
be appalled at their own shame.

16 But may all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation always say,
"The LORD be exalted!"

17 Yet I am poor and needy;
may the Lord think of me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
O my God, do not delay.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJHao_5N9d8