Oh No! Not Again!

I just couldn't believe it!  When Fox News called Ohio for Obama, I felt this horrible sinking feeling in my gut!  It just couldn't be happening!  There is no way we could endure another four years of the administration!  How could this be happening?  The "Architect," Karl Rove, had predicted Romney would win, certainly not by as big a margin as Dick Morris, who predicted Romney with 325 electoral votes!  I really wanted to believe it would be a landslide for Romney.  We need things to turn around so badly!  I even followed Dick Morris' commentary as he tweeted through the election coverage.  He tried so hard to keep encouraging the folks who were following his comments.  His last tweet was, "don't give up!"  I found myself trying to hold to the idea that just maybe they were wrong.  All the votes would be counted and the outcome would be different.  We felt like the second verse of the Christmas hymn, I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day: 

And in despair I bowed my head: 

"There is no peace on earth," I said, 

"For hate is strong and mocks the song

of peace on earth good will to men."

Numbly I listened to the commentators.  What went wrong?  Many will play the blame game.  They will blame the candidate.  He certainly wasn't my first choice, but he was who we ended up with, and even though we differed on a number of things, I still believe he was the better man for the job.  Some will blame Sandy the "Frankenstorm."  If the storm hadn't hit and caused all this devastation, it wouldn't have given Obama, this opportunity so near the election to present himself as bi-partisan, and so presidential!  I guess we might even blame God, because He could have stopped or redirected the storm. Why would He allow this man, who has been the friend of Israel's enemies, to continue to lead our country for another four years?

I guess we need to sing the third verse of this Christmas hymn: 

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep, 

"God is not dead nor does he sleep;

The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, 

with peace on earth good will to men."

One of Romney's sound bites on the campaign trail was that "America would be restored as the Hope of the world."  The truth is that Jesus Christ is the Hope of the world!  He alone is the answer for what ails America.  We desperately need Revival.  We can't allow our spirits to be overwhelmed by disappointment!  In Psalm 42:5 the psalmist writes:

Why are you downcast, O my soul?

Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God,

for I will yet praise him,

my Savior and my God.

I'm sure that Dick Morris didn't know what else to say after his last message, "Don't give up."  Perhps he was really right on target with those very words, echoed in the following old poem:

 Don't Quit

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

Author Unknown

So... put your hope and trust in God, and don't give up.  Don't quit!

Blessings!

Financial Peace!

We are almost halfway through Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University classes, and I only wish I could and would have taken this YEARS ago!  One of those things he reminds us of frequently is that this isn't just about money; it's about LIFE!  In one of the early classes he told us that if he could get that "man he shaves with," "the man in the mirror,"  "to behave," he could then be both rich and thin!

I find myself wishing I could "GIVE" the Financial Peace University to everyone, especially my family and friends.  There is however a problem with my thinking on this.  People usually value something more when they have some investment in it, and therefore tend to discount it, when they don't.  The opportunity that is here, especially for the young people, is priceless!  So, I am doing all I can to make these principles work in my life, so that (even though I am REALLY late at getting started) I may be a positive example, demonstrating the fact that these Biblical principles in Financial Peace really work!  Hey, you don't have to wait for a class to get started either.  You can start by just  prayerfully reading Proverbs.  Dave says you can get a degree in finance from the wisdom of the Proverbs.  For more information check out the link at www.daveramsey.com
Blessings

God's Miraculous Love!

Steve and Lady Walker

This past Sunday morning we heard an amazing testimony from a woman named Lady Walker, and I want to share with you here what I remember of this awesome account of God's miraculous love. 

Lady was suffering with rheumatoid arthritis, and things had gone from bad to worse.  Her feet were red and as she put it, "deformed."  Her doctors told her she could eventually expect to be in a wheel chair.  Meanwhile they gave her some special boots, that she called "moon boots."  They were big and ugly-looking but with them and crutches she could get around although somewhat painfully.  Understandably she didn't get out very much, and her husband Steve who is a sales representative for England Furniture asked her to go with him to the Atlanta market.  The change of scenery would be good, and she could enjoy the Hotel while he was working.  However, they arrived early that July morning, and there reservation were for that evening.  She waited at the market for a while, and then went to the Hotel to see about an early check in.  They said she could leave their baggage but couldn't get in to the room until sometime after lunch that afternoon.  So, she went to the nearby mall and waited in the parking lot, until it was too hot sit in her car any longer.  On  her Dad's recommendation she went in to the mall to look for a place to cool off and rest.  As she was riding up an escalator she felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to see three teenagers.  One of them spoke and said, "Mam, I see you have some trouble with your feet, and Jesus wants to heal you.  May we  pray for you?"  They found a place for her to sit down in a folding chair near the entrance to one of the shops, and asked her if she would take off her boots.  She responded, "no, please, my feet look awful."  The two young ladies knelt on either side of Lady and placing their hands over her feet they began to pray.  The young man stood in front of her and prayed.  As they prayed Lady felt heat in her ankles and in her feet!  One of the young ladies spoke, "Do you feel something?"  Lady replied, "Yes!"  Then the young lady asked, "Please, could you take off one of your boots?"  She responded by removing one of the "moon boots" to reveal a perfectly whole white foot, with no redness nor deformity!  She removed the other boot, and it was the same!  Her feet were healed!   Having no other footwear, she  put the "moon boot" on again stood up to go, but the young people were gone.   Lady believes they may have been angels sent from God to heal her.  The certainly were sent from God. 

As soon as she returned to the Hotel and went to her room, she called her husband, Steve, and told him what had happened.  He responded, "Are you sure you didn't just wake up from a very realistic dream?"  He even suggested that maybe she had had some wine!  After he returned to the Hotel, they decided to go to the restaurant across the street to eat.  She suggested they could just run across the four lanes of this busy street, and they did! 

After the market, Lady went to an appointment with her doctor, who was amazed.  She didn't tell him how it happened, and he commented that "This just couldn't be!  Your rheumatoid arthritis is genetic.  There just isn't any cure!  

The truth is God just manifested His awesome grace and love to Lady Walker, by healing her completely!  I want you to know that He loves you too!  In fact, I believe there is a miracle in the making for you!  Oh the wonders of our awesome God, and oh the depth of His miraculous love!

Resurrection Celebration!

It was an awesome Easter Sunday, beginning with a small group gathered in what will be our new sanctuary (when it's completed) for Sunrise Service at 7:00 a.m.  The acoustics in that place are amazing right now, with no carpet or seating.  There's no need for amplification.  We sang some Old Easter Hymns, celebrating the Resurrection, and simply worshiped our Living Lord together.  God's Presence was AWESOME, and the sunrise  service set the tone for the entire day!  On my way back to the house before Sunday School, I stopped at the Convenience Store near the interstate, and before I leaving responded to the need of the store manager by bowing my head and praying aloud at the front counter for the needs she mentioned.  I know it was a public place, but I still had the wonderful awareness of God's presence, and believe He really wanted her to know how much He cares for her (the manager).  Our Sunday School and Morning Worship Services were a continuation of this outpouring of His Presence, as we celebrated Jesus Christ the first fruits of the Resurrection!  My heart danced before the Lord as we worshiped together.

The GOP Race

In case your interested, I thought I need to comment about the GOP primary race.  Many of you know that I continue to support Rick Santorum, not because I agree with him 100%, but because he is the closest of the remaining GOP candidates to my values, and I believe that values will determine the kind of leadership we will have in 2012.  Santorum is the strongest candidate in the race on issues that matter most to me.

I am, however, concerned about a number of things that I need to address.  When you look at how the numbers have been stacking up and realize that even when Romney wins, most of the time more than 50 - 60 percent do not vote for him.  Real conservatives just don't have a passion for him, but if the nomination can be bought, he seems to be the one who has the money to buy it.  It just makes me wonder what the outcome might have been if real conservatives could have narrowed the competition to just one candidate against Romney.  Unfortunately it appears that some conservatives are beginning to bail, as the window get smaller.  I will however continue to encourage folks to vote values and principles, even if we don't win.  The GOP must hear the voices Christian Values and Godly Principles that have defined the Right for so long.  The more the message is watered down, the more difficult it is to tell the difference between the political parties. 

Pray for our nation.  We need someone to defeat the most un-Biblical President America has ever had.  We need REAL CHANGE in America now more than ever before!