IN MEMORY

Of Carrie & Matthew Oliver








And Jackie & Tennyson McCarty








Mothers and their sons who were loved and cherished. We miss you.

Shadows in the Light
by Robert Lavery

















The sunlight streams through my window.
It warms my skin but also brings comfort to my spirit.
It is never changing, always there.
At night the moon reminds me that the light has not gone
It will return in time, I must be patient.
As the moon comes and goes through the sky,
So does my life go on.
That life is never changing.
It continues through time.
I have had joy as bright as the sun.
I have had sorrow as dark as the new moon.
Yet the cycle continues.

At times in the dark of night.
When the moon is not in the sky.
I look into the flame of a candle.
In its light I see hope.
They are with me still those shadows of the past.
I hear their laughter,
I see their smiles,
But I long for the comfort of their embrace.

As the cycle of sun and moon continues.
So does my life, it continues.
I am not ready to join the shadows yet.
The sunlight streams through my window.
I lie in its warmth and dream of them.
Even in the light their shadows are around me.
I think of where my life is now.
The changes that have been wrought in me.
I still hear their laughter,
Still see their smiles,
And I know they are near me.

(excerpt from Love Lost: Love Found)
Shared by Dr. Gary Oliver
http://www.carrieshealth.com/updates.html

De-Seat De-Cup?

A story a friend sent along this past week really got me thinking about the things I have whole heartedly pursued along my life road. Through the years there were changes, growth, lessons to be learned and struggles that would realign my thinking as well as my activity. Some of those experiences I welcomed and….. some I treated like an ugly bug crawling up my leg. Freak–out! Prayed like crazy! See where your thoughts take you.

A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. The conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life. Offering his guests coffee, the professor went to the kitchen and returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups - Porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal, some plain-looking, some expensive, and some exquisite - telling them to help themselves to the coffee.

After all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: "If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is but normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, that is the source of your problems and stress."

"Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the coffee. In most cases, it's just more expensive and in some cases even hides what we drink. What all of you really wanted was coffee, not the cup, but you consciously went for the best cups...and then began eyeing each other. Now consider this: Life is the coffee and the jobs, houses, cars, things, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to hold and contain life, and the type of cup we have does not define nor change the quality of life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us."

A pearl to string: In Matthew 6 we are encouraged to seek God first and our most important needs will be met. In Proverbs 1 we are advised to acquire a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair. In 1 Corinthians 13 we learn that love never fails and it is the greatest of all God made characteristics. I’ve learned that when my life is contained in the cupped hand of God I don’t spill out all over the floor. Learning to choose the right cup is joy.

Sipping with Jesus,
Lyndi

The Pleasure of Tight Boots

There is a story about a farmer who bought a brand new pair of boots. Those boots however, turned out to be a tad too tight. The boot maker offered to stretch them so they would fit.

"Oh no, you'll not stretch these boots an inch!” insisted the man. "You see, I start every morning before sunrise checking on some ornery cows that have knocked down a fence or caused some other trouble. Then I go to the office and listen to all of the members complain about this and that. Then I come home to hear my wife tell me what chores I haven't gotten done around the house. When I get ready for bed and I take off those tight boots....Well, some days that's the only pleasure I have!"

So what does the end of your day look like? What soothes your soul and refreshes your spirit? Is it your loving family, a crazy happy dog, a dinner ready & waiting, your recliner and the remote control?

String a pearl: We all face some tight fitting problems in our life. Stress, heart ache, and crisis can rob us of our joy. Oh, don’t allow that to happen. Fight back, reach high and know the Lord loves you and has a plan for your life. Reading God’s Word we learn from David that walking closely with the Lord is even more pleasurable than removing tight boots at the end of a troubled day: "I said to the LORD, 'You are my Lord. Every good thing I have comes from you.'...The LORD is all I need. He takes care of me.....I praise the LORD because he advises me. Even at night, I feel his leading. I keep the LORD before me always. Because he is close by my side, I will not be hurt....You will teach me how to live a holy life. Being with you will fill me with joy; at your right hand I will find pleasure forever." (Psalm 16:2,5,7-8,11, NCV)

Coach Wonderful often quotes 2 Corinthians 10:5 … “Take every thought captive. Does it agree with the Word of God? If so, pursue it – if not, dismiss it with dispatch!” I love his Mac translation – it helps me live hourly with the negatives that bombard our daily lives. And in Jeremiah 29 God tells us. “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

We can thrive on that promise,
Lyndi

Sparkle and Shimmer

Ever find yourself mesmerized by the shimmering of the aspen tree leaves? Isn’t it amazing how God shaped their leaves like little hearts, made them a vibrant green on one side and a soft shade of green on the other. As the breeze flutters through, the leaves sparkle and shimmer like no other tree.

Their beauty catches my breath.

I love gazing at the slender trunks of white and autumn yellow leaves against the back drop of rich dark green pine tree across the face of a mountain. Simply spectacular! It brings joy to my heart.

Feeling the depth of God’s creation brings precious glimpses of God’s delight over each one of us. Even a gloomy Gus day cannot dim the reality of happiness I have in Jesus’ love nor the joy He has in each one of us.

We are His treasured jewels, matchless, inimitable, each one of us uniquely defined by God. When the breeze of God’s Holy Spirit blows on us and through us, we sparkle and shimmer and amazingly reflect God’s joy in us.

A pearl to string: Try not to dissolve like a human bouillon cube when hot water bubbles around you – Persevere for God in time gives life to your dreams in a way that surpasses your hope. The Message translation illuminates God’s reality for us in Luke 8:15: “But the seed in the good earth—these are the good-hearts who seize the Word and hold on no matter what, sticking with it until there's a harvest”. Remember the two shaded aspen leaf shaped like a heart sparkles and shimmers even in the rain? When you lean in and trust your creator - you do too!

Know In His grace we will thrive,
Lyndi

Yikes, Fried Again!

October 8, 2007

Ever received a tongue lashing? Ever given one? It makes a body want to scream, “Yikes, fried again”! When the little fleshy organ inside your mouth goes on a despicable tirade because you were what…… tired? Hurt? Insulted? Didn’t agree? “Reckless words pierce like a sword.....” Proverbs 12:18 “For out of the overflow of his heart the mouth speaks”. Matthew 12:34, Luke 6:45

Well you’ve probably heard or said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that”! “I can’t believe I said that, or I wish I had not said that”. “Can you forgive me and forget I said that?” You can say you are sorry, you can ask for forgiveness and receive it but the truth is………… the damage is done. Once those ill fated words left your mouth and are out there the chances of taking them back are nil.

In Proverbs 18:21 we read, "The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." In days of yore when a king spoke a decree, there was no rescinding it. Even if the King realized he had made a mistake in judgment the ruling was rendered regardless of the terrible cost.

Many of us struggle with our speech. We hear inappropriate, over the top, mean spirited speech in our homes, at work, in our schools, sporting events, malls, even church parking lots. It’s just downright ugly. It is everywhere we go. Scripture gives solid advice to this malady. There are many who genuinely resolve to think before they speak and lean on God’s Word. "I will watch my ways and keep my tongue from sin." Psalms 39:1. Oh Lord, "Set a guard over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips." Psalm 141:3 (that’s my personal favorite)

Nice but remember "The tongue is a small part of the body, ...consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark." (James 3:5) Coping with a mean spirited tongue is like dealing with a dragon and you know what they say about that: Don’t mess with dragons for you are good and crunchy with ketchup!

A pearl to string: The bottom line here is the tongue only says what is already set in the heart. The problem really isn’t the mouth….. Oh no, pass the tissues we’ve got heart issues. Remember what your Grandmother use to say? Count your blessings! Why? Because a heart full of gratitude doesn’t have room for ugly. “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer”. Psalms 19:14

Change my heart oh God,
Lyndi

Earth Arms & A Song

Nicole Walters
Singing for Jesus
http://www.mygoodnessmagazine.com/









October 1, 2007

I was reading Nicole Walter’s article, My Unbroken Heart, this morning in the online ‘My Goodness magazine’. Wow, her words really got to me. I pondered that article for hours and had a multitude of reactions, even excuses. I asked the Lord to show me why this unsettled my spirit.

Someone long ago wrote of sitting by a fire. The writer imagined the noises which came from the wood as it burned were imprisoned songs, finally brought to freedom by the flames. They reasoned the birds had sung while sitting on the branches of the tree. The wind had pushed its way through, making its own music. The rain had written a melody which sank deep into its roots. A child had played and sang in its shade. All these notes soaked into the wood, hidden away in the trunk. They were hidden away until the flames set them free one evening chilly enough to warrant an open fire.

The body of Christ is like that to me. God has given each one of us gifts to serve in His kingdom. Life can lock a song away until your heart breaks for someone else’s need and you are moved by the Holy Spirit to extraordinary actions as well as serving joyfully in the mundane and everything in between. We are a body made up of parts each valuable and glorious when God directed. Scripture tells me so. The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. (1 Corinthians 12:12) 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. (Romans 12:4-5)

I thank God for the incredible people who serve in the trenches of life and on the front line. This world we live in is so blessed to have them working for God. They face extraordinary circumstances, persevere through great difficulty and suffer enormous personal loss. Oh yes there is personal joy for them too but they couldn’t do it without God – it’s way too hard and the cost is way too great. I have many friends who serve in the trenches and on the front line – it’s my awesome privilege to pray for them and encourage them and love them with everything God gave me along with praying for hundreds I don’t even know. Have you ever seen one of those “trench serving” people sitting at a concert where Nicole is singing? I am a witness to such a beautiful sight. Sometime ago while attending a concert at Faith Church in Arvada I was mesmerized as I gazed over at a woman I knew was tired and nearly to the end of spent on hiatus from the mission field. As Nichole’s sassy, passionate angelic voice reached her ears her head leaned back, her eyes slowly closed and tears trickled softly down her cheeks. I watched as this precious woman’s body seemed to sigh with healing relief. My eyes kept wondering over to check on how this woman was doing throughout the concert. By the end of the concert the woman seemed animated, energized and refreshed. Seems like such a little thing….. but

A pearl to string: Nothing is little with God. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. (Ephesians 4:16) God uses our earth arms and songs to build each other up for glory in His love.

Know your worth to Jesus -
He loves you with His life,
Lyndi