A new week begins.

Monday has rolled around again. It seems like it happens every week at the same time. Sunday starts the week. Bible study and worship set the stage for the rest of the week. I am reminded again and again that the Lord is guiding me through all that I will face throughout the week. That message encourages me and helps me as I face whatever happens. I praise the name of my Lord Jesus Christ for His love, for the reality that He faced the fullness of the Law on my behalf, paying the price of my sins, and then giving to me forgiveness, strength for living each day of my life and the wonderful sure and certain hope of life eternal on that day when I breathe my last. 

So Monday has rolled around. As I start this week, I do so with confidence. That is confidence that helps me no matter the situation. Health or sickness, easy living or difficult situations, the Lord is with me. Wow! I want you to know this: That message is for you too. Believing in Jesus gives you strength to face whatever you are going through this week. Be certain that the Lord will guide you today.

I pray for the folks in Ukraine. Watching the rocket blasts in one of the cities, makes me cringe. I cannot imagine what it must be like to be in that situation. I know that several generations ago, people were living through this kind of disaster and destruction. Who would have thought that in the 21st century this would be taking place? Once again, I want to take you back to what I said above - the Lord is with the people of Ukraine. He will protect them and help them through this. Does that mean that no one will be hurt? No. Does it mean there will be no destruction? No. As sad as it is, those things happen in a fallen, sinful world that does not follow the will of God. We see the Russians acting in a way that is not in accord with the will of God. This kind of destruction and harm is not in accord with the way the Lord would have folks act. Sin does that. It leads to hurt, harm and death. 

Lord, have mercy. Lord give strength. Lord give protection. Lord, please, I pray for the Ukrainians, lifting them up to You, asking You to help them. In Jesus' name, 

More thoughts as I sit looking at the cold outdoors

 Boy is it cold outside. I know it is still February, but it is really cold! As I was letting the dogs back inside this morning, I told them (yes, I talk to my dogs like they can understand what I am saying) that I think that this might be our last big blast of bitter cold air. We will have cold air, but then again, when it gets into the 50s regularly in March, the 30s and even 20s will feel mighty cold. It all depends on what you have as an average temp as to what is cold. What is crazy is that Monday, it was 63 degrees. We opend a few windows to let fresh air in the house. Only to have to shut them again because of how the cold came rushing back in. Yesterday morning was a surprise (Tuesday) when there was a glaze of ice on everything. Was not expecting that. Perhaps snow tomorrow. We will see. 

Pray for the folks in Ukraine. The invasion has begun. It has not been intense (I can say that from the middle of the USA where I am not really facing the military might) but I still cannot imagine what they must be going through. Will a tank roll down the streets of the towns on the border? It blows my mind to think that might happen to some of those towns in Ukraine. As terrible as it is in some of the cities around our country with the shootings that take place regularly, the sound of gunfire in neighborhoos, I imagine it is much worse when it is not small arms fire but military weapon fire (rifles, cannons, tanks). So lift up all the folks in prayer. Ask the Lord to protect the people of Ukraine. Also ask the Lord to protect the soldiers on both sides. They are doing what they are told by their leaders. Pray that the leaders of all the nations will realize the disaster that this brings on so many levels, and will back down and find a better way to act.

Puzzling. Shift thinking. We are doing the winter time activity for our house - puzzles. They are a fun diversion. There is not really much to watch on TV, we don't have Hulu or Netflix, or whatever other folks have. Some puzzles are more challenging than others. They really make you think, to train your eyes, to think about the picture and how it might go together. You have to be careful you don't put a piece in the wrong place, because it will make it harder, if not impossible to complete. So it is in life. If you put the wrong piece in your life, life gets harder. Here is where I encourage you to listen to the Word of the Lord, to follow His guidance in your life, and see how He helps you put your life together, from when you are young till your are in the last days of your life. Each piece in your life is important. Keep that focus.

Looking at the world scene

Is this what it was like? I have been thinking about that recently. With Russia set to invade the Ukraine, I sit and wonder if this means that the world is on the verge of a major war.  Each morning, as I turn on the news, I wonder if the breaking news will be that Russia had invaded, that war has broken out. We hear that if Russia invades, there will massive economic sanctions set against them. I don't know if that will help or not. I don't even know if that will take place or not. Our leadership has shown itself to be weak on the world scene, so will it suddenly become strong? I wonder. I don't have the answer.

But is this what it was like when the world knew that there was always the threat of Hitler to lead Germany against Poland and other nations in Europe. People waited to hear on the radio if Hitler had invaded. It seemed inevitable and yet, there was all the talk that preceded it. Chamberlin had met with Hitler and came away with the news that Hitler would not invade. Then came the day when he did. It was a terrible time. I wasn't around at that time, but from all that I hear and read, it was a tense time. 

I wonder if folks feel the same way. Will war break out? Will Russia invade? Will our men and women be involved in trying to help Urkraine? Or will we as a nation allow Russia to take that nation, saying we don't support it, and yet, doing little to stop it? I don't have the answer. I hope that Putin will back down and not invade. Many lives will be saved. So much of the nation will be saved from the destruction of war. I watch the news with the shelling taking place even before war has started, since it is the Russian back separtist that are doing the shellling, and my heart goes out to the people who are facing it. Can you imagine trying to go about your life with shells falling in and around your town? It is crazy enough that we have a nation where violence and killing are out of control. But imagine having shells falling in your neighborhood. It just blows my mind. I can't fathom it.

What can you and I do? We can pray. We pray that the Lord would move Putin to back down. We pray for the people of Ukraine. We pray for the soldiers, on both sides, for many of them will die if the invasion happens. We pray that the Spirit would guide the world leaders would do the right thing to protect the lives of so many people around the world. We pray for the world to be at peace. 

Is this what it was like? Waiting to hear that a world crisis will happen...

Tuesday morning ramblings.

 Winter continues on, as we find ourselves midway through the month of February. But it sure hasn't felt like winter. Yes, we have had some cold day and even colder nights. But we have also have relatively warm days and warm nights. There has not been too much moisture this winter. We had a couple of snows, but not really that much. Snow did hang on for a while on the north side of buildings, and hillsides while the south side of buildings and hills have been snow free for quite some time. Winter - it has not been what winter tends to be. 

I have really enjoyed the sunshine. It feels so good to walk outside in the sun, to see the blue skies, to start hearing the birds singing in the trees. Yesterday a flock of about a dozen robins zoomed through the yard, chattering away, and landing in the neighbors pine trees. I was amazed. I wondered what they were talking about and what made them zoom through the yard like they did. I figure it must have been all the sunshine and blue skies that made them act the way they did. 

One of our members saw a bunch of eagles in trees. When I talk about a bunch, I mean, a BUNCH! One pitcure that she took had 30 eagles in the picture (I counted them). They were young and old. I have to admit that I was envious. We have looked for eagles all through this last week and had very little luck seeing them. I looked at those pictures and wished...if only. She had let me know where they were, whih was over by Nebraska City, NE and Percival, IA. I thought about it for a moment. 

Then I stopped and realized it was not to be. Why? First and foremost, I was taking Penny out to dinner for Valentine's Day. We were looking forward to a good meal together on a special day. We began dating on February 16, 1979 at a Valentine's Day dance at high school. Who would have thought that on that night many years ago, we would be together, having raised a family, and served various congregations around the country. I have been blessed to have Penny in my life. She is such a blessing to me. I thank God for bringing us together. I remember being at that dance and nervously asking her if she wanted to start dating. I was so afraid she would say no. But she said yes. We were just kids. Really, we were kids. I was 17 and she was 14. Can you imagine? And yet, here we are. Wow! Thanks Penny, for the wonderful life we have shared together. Love you!

Back to the eagles. We could have eaten later but we had a Board of Education meeting at church, so we had to eat early enough to be done before the meeting. So, with those things in mind, I was envious of the member for having such an opportunity to see so many eagles. I am beginnning to wonder if they are starting to think about going north. I did see that Canada was still a frozen tundra, so maybe they will be around for a while longer and Penny and I will get the chance to watch them. I love taking pictures of them. Always searching for the perfect picture. 

This is one we happened to see a few weeks ago. The intensity in the eagles eyes is something to behold. They are majestic creatures that God created. His desire to create such wonderful birds, wow. What an amazing God that made us. He is the Creater and Preserver. He makes all. He preserves all. Praise be to God. 

The alarm rings, and the day begins

 The alarm went off and I jumped out of bed. It was the day! Excitement coursed through my body. Hurrah! It had finally arrived. Oh the joy that comes when a longed for day arrives. And the day was here. Time to get packed and get ready. Rushing around, it was time to head out.

Wait a moment, that is not true. That is not how it happened. Let us rewind and start over.

The alarm went off and I reached over and turned it off. Sighing, I sat up. The day had arrived. Yes, it was a good to have this day arrive but I sure wasn't excited. Swinging the legs out of the bed, I felt the reality of the what was going on. It was the day for my second knee surgery. It was Thursday, February 11, 2021. I had been waiting for this day to arrive. The 1st knee surgery was in October, 2020. I was supposed to have the 2nd knee surgery in January 2021 but because of a positive covid test, it was put off for a month. So on that Thursday morning, a year ago, I stood up. Time to get ready for the operation.

Excited? Not really. Anxious? Yes. Taking it to the Lord in prayer? You bet. I was praying a lot the night before and throughout the night. I did sleep well. But, I was anxious. I remembered what it was like after the 1st one. Not fun, but necessary. I knew that I would have pain. I would be challenged to walk. I would struggle to get the leg going again. But it would be worth it.

Here I am, a year later, looking back, remembering what it was like to be looking forward to the surgery, praying for the Good Shepherd to lead me through day, and I am thankful. I walked down the stairs, foot over foot. Wonderful. I walked across the room. Thank you! Yes, it was worth all that I went through. The healing has happened. Is it perfect? Of course not. It isn't the way that God intended the knees to be. But then again, because of the fallenness of this body, the old knees were not the way God intended either. I rejoice that God has given us the technology to be able to replace and repair knees that were a mess. Walking hurt. Now it does not. Stairs were a challenge. Now they are not as much of a challenge, though they can still be challenging. I can sleep well. I give thanks for having gone through all that it took to get here today.

So one year later. I think back, shudder, and then move forward. I remember the pain, the suffering, and the healing. The Lord has done wonders. All praise be to God on this day that I went through the past year. Walking into the day, I sing "Praise God from whom all blessings flow, Praise Him all creatures here below, Praise Him above ye heavenly host, Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost." Amen. 

New day, new week, new ramblings

Monday morning. Here it is. What does that mean for you? Depending on your life, it means different things. For kids, it means heading back to school. For some adults, they head back to work. For those who are retired, it means...I don't know. When I talk with some retired folks, they say how busy they are. I was going to say that they get to get up and enjoy a cup of coffee without having to hurry around and get going. But maybe that isn't the truth. Anyway, for others, it is another day of treatments. Still for others...think about it. What does Monday mean for you? 

We are on the 7th day of February. I am beginning to think that maybe winter weather is over. February is getting warmer. The birds are starting to sing in the mornings again. I hope that I am proved wrong. I would like one really good snowstorm. I know that there were some folks across the country that had a snowstorm last week - through Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and other states. Good for them. I was hoping (and praying, though the Lord said "no" to my prayer) that the storm would shift a little further north and we would get some of the snow. But alas, it was not meant to be. Watch, when we get to March or April, we will hae big, wet snows. I would rather get the snow in January and February rather than March and April, when it is supposed to be spring. 

WOW! Wings are really expensive. They are talking about some places charging $2 per pound for wings for Super Bowl. We tried to get wings from Pizza Hut and they were charging $10 for 6 wings. Guess what, we did not order them. That is too high. Those chickens needs to start growing more wings. Move closer to the nuclear plants and maybe they would grow 4 wings instead of 2. True, they might glow at night, but we would have wings.

Speaking of the Super Bowl, are you going to watch this next Sunday? I doubt if we do. I have no pony in the race. I reckon those folks who are into football will watch it. I believe the Rams are playing in it. I am not sure who the other team is. I do know it was not Kansas City, which disappointed many folks around here. 

What is your relationship with Jesus? I entreat you that you would continue to hold fast to the name of Jesus Christ. You never know when your last day will be. Don't wait, thinking you will have time to turn from a life without Christ, to one with Him. You never know. Hold fast to the One who suffered, died and rose again for you and all people. Share that message of the gospel with others. Encourage, lift up and help one another. 

All right. Have yourself a great week. Enjoy each day. Thank the Lord for the many blessing He gives to you. And love one another.