Special....

What makes something "special?"  Is it something that surpasses that which is common or usual?  Is it something "Exceptional?" Or is it something that is distinct and one of a kind?  It is something distinctive indeed.....sole, specific and unique! 

Well, that is my niece, Michelle!!!  Today is her 40th birthday...........which is a very special day for our family!!!

Michelle is the oldest of three girls........born in April.......the first child to my sister and her husband, the first grandchild to my mom and dad and the first Great-Grandchild to my grandparents, Gramps and Grami. 

What a special day it was...........April 26, 1980.  A day full of joy and happiness!!!  A day filled with love!!!  A day to remember..............

What makes Michelle special?  Many things!  She is gorgeous, intelligent, flexible, adaptable, kindhearted, hard-working, industrious and wonderful!!!  She, like Mary Poppins can make ANY day special! 

SUPER-CAL-I-FRAG-I-LISTIC-EX-PI-AL-I-DO-SIOUS!!! Yep!  That's Michelle!

Just walking with her and her doggie, Luna is special. Sharing a cup of coffee at the Mad Llama coffee shop is special.  Sharing lunch at First Watch is special. Making dinner at home is special. Even doing laundry with Michelle is special.  You see, it's not the place or the event you share with Michelle....it's the person!  She is the Extra-Special ingredient!!!

When my grandmother, Dorothy was alive, she would call Michelle "The Little Red Hen."  Michelle always wanted to help, always showed compassion when someone needed a little companionship, always offered herself, and was a little ray of sunshine anywhere she went!  She is/was the Special ingredient!

Remember the old song:  The Rainbow Connection by Kermit the Frog?
 Here are some of the words to the song: 
"Why are there so many songs about rainbows, and what's on the other side?
 Rainbows are visions, but only illusions, and rainbows have nothing to hide.
So we've been told, and some choose to believe it,
I know they're wrong; wait and see....
Someday we'll find it, the Rainbow connection;
The lovers, the dreamers and me."

My family has found that Rainbow connection in Michelle......she's a lover, a dreamer and she can brighten up any room!!!  She is the sunshine after the rain......the place where the Rainbow can shine!!!

Thank you, dear Heavenly Father for sending this ray of sunshine into our lives!

Frolic....

Have you ever seen an entire field of baby lambs frolicking?  That's right!  Jumping, romping, prancing and just having fun!!!  We all need that about now and then, and of course right now with this COVID lockdown!!!

So what makes you want to frolic?  Where can you add some playfulness in your life?
Some high-spirited fun???  I know we cannot be with the people we normally would go to to have fun, but think about it!  What would you do if you could?  Who would you do it with?

Make a list!  Make it fun!  Make it long!!!
Make a list of the old fashioned gaiety or merrymaking you would do!!!  Or what your Grandfather might have done!!  My beloved grandfather, Gramps used to pull quarters out of our ears!!! I was amazed every time he did it!  How did he do it?  To this day, I cannot replicate it!  But, it was FUN!!!
So, what is a fun prank you could pull?  What trick could you play?  How might you tease someone close to you to bring a smile today???

Just recently at my former job before I was laid off, one of my co-workers told me that I was not "frolicking enough!"  So, I started going down the aisle of our cubes to say hello, share a smile, and ask about their day!  Who can you check on to see if they are frolicking???  (Ha! Ha!)

How can we "frolic" more???   Look up an old cartoon like Looney Tunes, Tom and Jerry, Road Runner and laugh!!!  Giggle...........have some fun - even in our Safe at Home places!!!
Watch an old Carol Burnett Show, I Love Lucy, Three Stooges........whoever made you laugh!!!

We have SO much to be grateful for........make a list of each time you frolicked...each time you were able to share a laugh with someone you had not seen in a very long time!  Each time you shared JOY!!!

Today your mission should you decide to accept it is:  FROLIC!!!

Resilience

Resilience....the ability to recover quickly.... buoyancy....the ability to resume after being bent out of shape....stretched!  Do you think our country and our world are being stretched right now??  Absolutely!!!

COVID-19 has completely shut our world's resources down!  Boom.  Stay at home. Safe at home. Locked down.  No travel.  Restricted on all levels.  Face masks in public.  Gloves.  Wash your hands and then wash them again.

Medical and healthcare personnel stretched to the brink of disaster! It IS a disaster.....

How does one have resilience in a time like this?  How do we bravely spring back into shape as a person, as a family, as a country, or as our world?

I don't have the answer to all those questions bouncing around in all of our heads and our hearts, but I do know that the buoyancy of faith will help us recover.  Faith in a God who is not surprised by this pandemic.  He has not been caught "off guard."  He is right here in the middle of this with us.  Just as He was on 9-11-2001.

He is there in the nurse who travels to New York City to share her talents and gifts of healing with all those suffering there...day after day....exhausted....spent....
He is there when a son goes to California to help his dad with the remnants of a house completely burned to the ground after a year of renovation.
He is there in the neighbor who checks on the other neighbors and sees if they need anything from the store.
He is there when we share our hope and our strength with those who have lost all hope, lost all strength.
He is there when we sing and share music that soothes our souls.
He is there when a church rallies around their community and offers Scriptures, prayers and healing.
He is there when a group of family and friends go to a parking lot of a hospital to park, pray and praise our Heavenly Father for healing those inside the hospital or rehabilitation facility.
He is there in the sunshine.
He is there on the gray days when our spirits are gloomy and in despair.
He is there in the gentle breeze that touches our face.
He is there when your dog or cat nuzzle up to you or does a silly dance for a treat and makes you smile.
He is there when you can hug your loved ones safe at your own home and have been quarantined for almost a month now.
He is there when you share a funny video on social media.
He is there when you call you sister because you are lonely and afraid.
He is there when your brother and sisters send funny memes to each other about Grizzly bear hugs from afar.
He is there when we are on our knees in prayers.
He is there when we cry for help.
He is there when we weep for those we have lost
He is there when we rejoice over one who comes home.

He is there.  Trust Him.  Rely on Him.  Depend on Him.  Come to Him.  Come to the Living Waters and drink from the well that never runs dry.

He is there.

The Lamb of God....

How many of you remember Twila Paris' song called:  The Lamb of God?  It is beautiful...it is tender...it is convicting.  Check it out on YouTube or iTunes!  It is one of my favorite songs!!!

We all know what lambs are:  a young sheep.  Or, in our culture, sometimes we describe a person as being like a lamb.  They are believed to be gentle, innocent or a gullible person.  One who is perhaps naive or mild-mannered. Do you know someone like that?  Perhaps your friend, or co-worker, student or child you teach, or perhaps it is a sibling who is gentle, innocent, or naive.  The characteristics of being like a lamb are lovely!  Yet, someone might be offended if you describe them as a lamb because they want to be strong, courageous or maybe even bold!  Yet, their personality is more humble, gentle and timid.  That's okay!  God gave each of us a different demeanor for a reason!  Each of us has a special unique gift that God planted in our souls...........we are to find and use it for His Glory!  So, if you are a lamb - be proud of it and wear it proudly for the Lord.

I have a funny story about lambs.....way back in 1983 when I was a MacMillan Publishing Company College Text book representative, I was driving to Warrensburg, MO to what they called back then:  Central Missouri State University, now University of Central Missouri.  The highway back then was only a 2 land highway.  As I was driving to the campus, just about 5 miles west of Warrensburg, was a field of baby lambs!  I was blown away at how cute they were: frolicking, jumping, and running after each other in what looked like pure fun!  So, I pulled over to the side of the road and just watched........smiled.....even laughed at their frolicking!  Suddenly, I heard a knock on my driver's window!  It startled me and there on the other side of the window was a policeman.  I rolled down my window and asked how I could help him?  He asked me if I was okay?  I said yes. Was my car disabled?  No, I responded.  "Then, why are you stopped Ma'am?"  My answer was:  " I am watching the baby lambs."  He about died laughing............his response was:  "Well, that's the first time I have ever had THAT answer!"
We both laughed and he asked me to get on my way as I was a hazard on the highway!  I will never forget that day!!  It was a beautiful spring day with clear blue skies and a whole field of baby lambs!!!  It was an amazing gift........

Now, let's concentrate on the Lamb of God:  Jesus Christ.  He was/is The King of the Jews, Savior, Redeemer and Lord of Lords!  He died to set each one of us free from our sins.  Have you ever truly realized the sacrifice that went into His Life, His death???  That's where the convicting part of Twila's song comes from!!  Jesus had NO sins.  He lived a perfect life.  He came as a gift of love and yet they crucified Him.  We crucified Him.  A torturous, cruel death.   They laughed at Him.  They scorned Him. They named Him a fraud.  And, yet, He was sacrificed for you, for me.  We are washed in His precious blood as believers.  I remember a time when I was so lost, I should have died.  But, He brought me to His side.  He led me with His staff and rod, just as the song says.  And, He gave me the right to be called a Daughter of the Most High God.
Wow!!!  Amazing............how can this be true? 

Take a peek at this Scripture in Mark 1:9 where this is recorded:  "At that time, Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan river.  As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw Heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending like a dove.  And a voice came from Heaven:  "You are my Son, whom I love; with You I am well pleased."
His Son.  God's Son.  Beloved.  Approved of.  Loved beyond imagination.  Wow.....

Then, the disciple John declared this in the Holy Scriptures in John 1:29: "The next day, John saw Jesus coming toward him and said: "Behold!  The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"

Can you imagine standing there in the midst of the crowd and hearing John proclaim these words?
I wish I could have been there!  I wonder how I might have reacted?  Praises?  Disbelief? Honored?  Or, Horrified?  If I knew that my sins would place Him on the cross to die for me, how would I have reacted?  Would I have been filled with gratitude?  Or, would I have been indignant?  Thinking I could not possibly do anything that horrible that someone would have to die for me.  I hope that I would have praised Him and honored Him, but would my disbelief have taken over?  Would I have been horrified by the fact of my own sin???  Only the Lord knows my heart and what I would have done.

All I know today is that I am incredibly blessed.  Jesus has become my friend as well as my Savior.  I remember when I was lost, but now I KNOW that I am found.  I don't have to doubt where I am going after this life.  I know where I am going!!!  And, it will be amazing.........The words of Amazing Grace run through my veins on some days!!!  And, another song says:  I know that my Redeemer lives - that is amazing!!!  I have everything I need.  Everything!!!

If the world ended tomorrow, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I will be in Heaven with my precious Lord.  That's not arrogance.  That is not bragging.  That is Salvation!!!  It is FREE to anyone who wants it!!!

How about you?  Do you know the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of this crazy world?  If not, start with reading the book of John in the New Testament in the Bible.  Look up John 3:16.  Read it over and over and over again until it sinks into your soul!  Ask a friend who has a strong faith to pray with you.  Ask my Pastor at Crossroads-Christian Church in Shawnee:  Brad Fangman or Brad Fogo at 913-962-9966.  Listen to a Podcast on why Christ came to earth.  Read Lee Strobel's book:  The Case for Christ.  Watch the DVD God's Not Dead.  Go to Crossroads.net app (my church in Cincinnati, OH) and find the God of the Universe who is even now looking for you!!!  There are a million different ways for you to connect with God and learn about Him and His amazing Grace!!!

The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.  Trust Him. Rely on Him. Come to Him.  Depend on Him.  He is there.........closer than your breath!!!

SPLASHES OF JOY!

SPLASHES OF JOY!

Okay, the silliness has begun.............it's Monday morning and I am on unemployed. What do I start my day with?  Thinking about Splashes!!!  Why???  Because I am nuts, that's why!!!  So humor me, will you please?

I was driving down the road the other morning and looked over at the truck next to me carrying 7-Up products and what did the sign read?  Splash Transit!  That got me thinking as you can imagine!!!  How do we transport our "Splash" for God?  Do we spread it all around for others to see or do we keep it hidden inside an 18 wheeler??? 

Splash means to dash or scatter about in masses!  Okay, let's get going:  dash, splash, splatter, scatter, swirl, swash, spray, and sprinkle away!!!  Send out a flying mass of love through the air waives or the internet by email, Instagram, Facebook or whatever social media format you like!  Send out a dash of peace to your neighbor that bugs you!  Swish past your impatience and give your kid or your spouse a mass of patience today - just because!  Scatter kindness and goodness!!!  Add a dash of gentleness next time someone hurts your feelings!  Swirl all the faith you have together and show the world the "masses" of gifts that God has given you!!!  Transport those gifts as "Splashes" to others and show how God has changed your life since you came to know Him!  And, last, but not least, offer NO self-control in spreading God's love!!!

Yep!  The fruits of the Spirit are yours to splash around wherever you can (virtually that is) today!!!  And, splash them again tomorrow and each day after that!!!  Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Goodness, Kindness, Gentleness, Faithfulness and Self-control.  (Oops, I mean NO self-control on this one!!!)

Now, let’s add JOY!!!  Joy is an emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying!! 

Exceptionally good…………satisfying………..hmmm……think about that!  We have more time to really delve into our thoughts and lives.  What is most important to you now and what brings us joy??? Pure Joy???

Think about elation?  What is that???  Joy with a big name!!!  When was the last time you felt elation???

Was it the first time your baby smiled at you?  What is the news that you were pregnant after waiting 15 years???  Or, was it when your grandchild learned to ride his/her bike with you watching???  Or, was it when you bought your first Mustang…..Nova…..Honda……Harley???

When was the last time you felt delighted as you shared a fun experience with someone special or your family or friends?  Playing cards, playing games together, playing baseball or soccer together?  Going for a walk or a bicycle ride together? While that is on hold for now, but that does not mean you cannot remember those joyful times and journal about them.  Or, better yet!  Write your son or daughter, sister or brother, friend or co-worker a note to let them know how much fun you had with them and you can’t wait to do it again!

When was the last time you really laughed?  I mean a laugh clear down to your belly button laugh!  Can you remember when was the last time you laughed, giggled, or cried at something so funny your sides hurt???  Start a revolution of laughter!!!

Get a comic book or a book full of jokes – go online and look up Knock, Knock jokes!  Just be silly!!!

Splash, sprinkle, dash and scatter a mass of joy in your corner of the world!!!  Splash those thoughts and memories all around when you talk, email, Facetime, send photos, posts, texts to the people in your life!  We need massive amounts of joy, laughter and love right now!  Spread it all around in any way you can!!!

SPLASH TRANSIT, here we come!!!

SPLASH AWAY!!! We need to encourage each other with JOY!!!

SPLASHES OF JOY – We need an entire world of silliness right now to offset the severity of this COVID 19 virus!

Nehemiah 8:10 says: “The Joy of the Lord is my strength.”

Unthawing a heart....

Have you ever heard of someone having to thaw out their heart?  Their heart has grown so cold that they can't even imagine life with it being frozen.

Or, have you ever been hurt so deeply that you think you will never recover?  Have you chosen to go "Stone Cold" to survive?  Have you closed your heart so that you will never get hurt again?

I don't know the answer to that question for you, but I do have a very special friend of mine who has been through such an excruiciating experience that she cannot come up for air.  And, it is 12 years AFTER she left the relationship.

Excruiciate means to inflict severe pain upon; torture; to cause mental anguish to; irritate greatly.
This subject is not a light one.  And, unfortunately, I know more than one person who has been through such a grueling experience.

1) Severe pain.....how do you heal from that? 
2) Torture.....how do you live through years of abuse and not get tainted about relationships and life?
3) Mental anguish.....how do you not put up a wall around yourself, a baracade so high that you won't get hurt again?
4) How do you stop hearing the things that were said to you over and over?
5) Irritate someone on purpose? Do people really do that to others? 

You bet they do!  And, on a daily basis.........for years......how do you walk away from the abuse?  When is enough, enough???

If you know someone who is going through this now, they may be asking themselves:  "How do you explain to your young children that you need to leave the home they have grown up in?"
Or, after the experience is over, you ask yourself:  "How do you tell my adult children what I went through?"  At what point does the truth need to be told???

If I were going through such a horrific experience, these questions would run through my head:
1) Should I build a rampart around me to fortify myself? 
2) Shall I build a wall around myself like a broad elevation or mound of earth to fortify a city as in the ancient days? 
3) Should I build a bulwark that is so strong that my defenses are continuously keeping people out of my life? 
4) Or, do I isolate myself and never tell anyone?  "What would people think if they knew what was going on behind the doors of this "Happy Family?"

Then, once you are out of the situation, what next?  How do you possibly heal from all those wounds.........30 years worth! 

Imagine going into a meat locker where a restaurant owner keeps their meat frozen.  Can you imagine how frigid the temperature is so that the meat does not go bad?  What if you touch something and your finger freezes instantly?  What if the door locked behind you and you could not get out of the freezer? Everything on your body would go frozen......just imagine how horrific that would be!

Well, imagine that person who survived abuse for over 30 years has been in the meat locker.  Her heart is frozen.  Frozen solid.  No hope for a spring thaw either.

In such a grave situation as this, how do you think you would live the rest of your life?  Happy and carefree?  One might hope so, but unfortunately, abuse runs deep.  It goes to the core of your being and replaces joy with fear and anguish.  It is very difficult to come out of this type of situation and be "carefree!"   So, we need to encourage these wounded ones that there is hope.  Hope to heal.  Hope to find love again.  Hope to find JOY again!

Despite the severe pain, the anguish, the physical, verbal and/or emotional abuse that was inflicted, a person CAN heal.  They can choose to heal.  Yet, that is NOT as easy as it sounds.

Please understand, I am not making light of this type of abuse or situation, nor am I judging or criticizing anyone who has been through such pain and anguish.  My prayer is that each person who has been through such a stinging experience, would experience restoration.  A metamorphasis so beautiful that they feel like a butterfly coming into to a new life after being in a cold, dark cocoon of horror.

My hope in writing this is to point these precious wounded ones who have been through so much to forgiveness and love. 

Forgiveness.  Choose to forgive.  Allow the process of forgiveness to take place one day at a time.
One day, you will be happy again.  One day, you will rejoice that you have been able to let go of all that pain....all that grief....all that ugliness.

Love.  Love for the asking. Love for the taking.  Love for the giving.  Restored relationships with people you love dearly and have been at arms length for way too long.

Each is a gift in and of itself.  And, a gift any person can give themselves...despite the pain, despite the abuse, despite the anguish, despite the isolation, despite the enormous hurt. Is it easy to do?  Absolutely NOT!!!  It is so very hard to start the journey of recovery.  But, it IS possible.

And, again, I am NOT making light of this and I am NOT a therapist or an expert. I know that  healing does NOT happen overnight!!!  It may take years of therapy and counseling.  It may take years of learning new thought patterns that are healthy and realistic.  It may take years of hearing good things about yourself before you believe it.  It may take years of being gentle with yourself.

Let me share with you one idea: 
Turn to the One, True, Living God.  Turn to the God who heals.  The God who restores.  The God who transforms us from the inside out!  Come to the Living Water.
Come and rest awhile.

How do I know this? Because I went through a dark experience, too.  Not one of abuse, but one of divorce.  I could have chosen to remain isolated and bitter and resentful.  But, I chose to go to the God whose love is unbelievable, incredible, inexpressible and goes on forever.  I chose to heal.  I chose to let Him change me from the inside out.  I reached out and ASKED Him to heal me.
And, I still ask Him everyday to heal me.

The beautiful part is that  I have been healed.  I have been restored.  And, I know the God who heals!!!  I know the God who transforms us, and I know that He CAN heal anyone.  Anyone who chooses to lay it all down at the bottom of the cross.  Anyone who chooses to surrender their pain, their hurt and their anguish.

He WILL heal us, if we let Him. If we ask Him!!! And, I am convinced that He can heal anyone completely = 100%!  I am living proof.  And, I praise Him from the core of my being for healing me, restoring me and allowing me to share this story. 

I pray that if you are hurting so deeply, you will come to the well.  Come to the Living Waters of Jesus Christ and ask Him to heal you.  He will.  I promise!!!

John 7:38 says:  "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."

Come.

Lovely.....

Do you know someone who is simply "Lovely?"  I do!  She is beautiful and charmingly so.  And, she doesn't even know she is so lovely!!!  She is sweet, quiet, whispy, gentle, humble, and delightful to be around!!!  She fits the definition of lovely:  having a beauty that appeals to the heart or mind as well as to the eye, as a person or a face.  Her beauty does appeals to the heart!

This person is a friend named Loraine.  Even her name is lovely.  Spelled with one "r" because it is English.  And her middle name is Rose.  Imagine a rose which petals have such a velvety touch and an aroma that is so fragrantly beautiful that it is wonderful to behold.  That is Loraine.  How does one get more lovely than that?

Loraine loves to garden and her flower garden is exquisite!  The flowers are gorgeous and delightful and exude her loveliness!!! From Spring until Fall they bloom and grow as she tends to them in such a tender way....I love visiting her garden in the Spring and Summer and getting a bouquet to take home - they are simply exquisite!!

Another quality Loraine has is that she loves to quilt!   Anyone who sees one of the quilts she has made can see that she puts love into every piece, every stitch of the quilt and then, she gives it away!  From the moment she chooses the fabric to the moment the quilt is finished, there is a special love that is poured into every piece of fabric that is sewn.  Her loveliness comes out even in her sewing!!!  How's that for lovely???

Several songs that I sing often remind me of the description of Loraine:
One of my favorite Christmas songs sung by Barbra Streisand is called:  "A Christmas Lullaby."  And, one of the lines in the song says:  "For someone lovely as snow falling...."  Isn't that beautiful?  I hope to become as lovely as snow falling one day.....but in the meantime, while God is still working on me, He has put that loveliness into Loraine!   
She IS as lovely as snow falling!!!  And, everyone who knows her is blessed, including me....

And, another song from The Sound of Music called "Maria" has another line that describes Loraine:  "How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?"  "How do you find a word that means "Loraine?"  Lovely..........simply lovely!!!

That internal beauty that quietly exudes from her personality and life is something to behold.  Some people may wonder how one person can be that lovely???   I am not sure how God decided to put that much loveliness into one human being, but He did!  I believe that loveliness comes from her deep faith.

Thank you Lord for the exquisite gift you have given me in this sweet friend, Loraine!  
If you know Loraine, then you know exactly what I am describing and if not, may you be as blessed as I am to know someone this lovely.