SEEING STARS

Ever seen stars?  Yeah.  Me, too.

During the Christmas extravaganza, the ten of us went out to eat at Hugo's.  I rode one way with Beth's family and was thrilled that the little girls wanted Mimi to ride home with them.  It was dark and raining.  The stage was set.

Lunging into Brad's van, I only missed one step.  It was a small step, but apparently a strategic one.  The good news was...the doorframe caught my fall.  The bad news was..my forehead also made the catch.

Now I'm thinking the Lord was pretty wise to cover our brains with bone.  There was quite a lot of forward thrust that creased the midpoint above my brow.

Brad was at my elbow in a flash.  "Did you lose your dignity?" he asked.

In our family, humor is essential and a laugh goes a long way.  So I humored him with a chuckle while wanting to blubber like a baby.

When we got home and into the light, the bulge had apeared and I was dubbed CroMagnon Woman.

Sure enough, my dignity WAS lost.

On day three (see right), the bulge is gone and the color is coming.  I'm loving these shades of red-violet.  Besides blue, purple is my favorite color.

OK.  Day four.  Seriously, is this what boxers look like the week after?

I asked Mike how I'd know if I had had a concussion.  He said "oh, you'd know.  You'd have double vision and seem confused/loopy".

Then we both died laughing.

Of course I'm grateful.  The Lord spared me real harm.  It really doesn't hurt that bad unless you touch the forehead.  I"m SURE not looking to touch it but sometimes I forget.  It itches.

So have I learned anything besides watching my steps more carefully?

LESSON ONE

Things happen in a flash, but consequences dawdle.
(BTW, this is certainly not a lesson new to me.)

LESSON TWO

What hurts one, hurts others.  My face causes others to wince.
Poor Mike.  We're avoiding going places because he gets looks.
My pain is not his gain.

LESSON THREE

Slowing life down...limiting destinations and resting...is REALLY a good thing.  

Don't you agree that our bodies need this week between Christmas
and New Years?  Let's leave turmoil and enter quietness.
God will be there if you invite Him.

The Message has its' own version of Matthew 11:28..."Are you tired?  Worn out?  Burned out on religion?  Come to me.  Get away with me and you'll recover your life.  I'll show you how to take a real rest."

WE WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS!

 The Lord says through Isaiah...

"Look!  I am about to do a brand new thing.  See, I have already begun!  Do you not see it?"


No, Lord.  We never saw it coming.


The Cruses have been bowled over this year.  Last December if you had told us that @Christmas 2011, Beth would be pregnant and Brad would live in Little Rock...we would have guffawed.  Who saw either of those coming?

I sent Beth's baby bump picture to a friend...who responded that God had answered prayer.  I emailed back.  "No, you don't understand, Georgia...they weren't even praying.  They were content and now they are flabbergasted."

Her answer?  "If you will remember, they DID pray some years ago.  And now the answer is here."

Amen, Georgia.  Nate (7) is so excited about his little brother Will...arriving around Valentines.

Brad, Laura, and the girls left New York City and arrived in Little Rock on the hottest month on record.

Now they've unpacked, survived, and are settling in.  The girls are enjoying their new space.  We love having them "drop in" from only 2.5 hours away.

It is funny how interconnected life can be.  Brad is working with a dentist on the 9th floor of the Med Towers next to Baptist Hospital.  He's in a corner room that is all glass.  Niiice.

Who would have thought that Gary and Jeanne Rollins (with four boys of their own) would adopt another?  But Brad says they treat him like a son.  Can you see their familial funny bone?  God can make a match.

Here is a random factoid.  Know who occupied that office space before Dr. Rollins moved in?  The space belonged to a surgeon for nineteen years.  And Georgia...the friend who reminded me about God's  answer to Beth's prayer...worked everyday in that space alongside her husband, Dr. Chuck Nash.  Small world.

Mike and I are loving our stage of life up here in the hills.  Well, mostly.  A kind lady pushed a cart by me the other day in the WalMart lot and stopped to offer "can I help you ma'am?"  All of a sudden I realized she was honoring an older person.  That SHOCKED me to realize my age.  In the spring, Mike will begin his seventh decade.  Are you kidding me?  When did we get old?

At the same time, life is increasingly vibrant.  When we tell the Lord goodnight, Mike and I constantly tell Him how amazed we are at His grace toward us.  This year the Spirit has been home-schooling  Mike as he prepares a weekly SS lesson.  Mike has always been a facilitator for groups, but this year he's hit his stride in cracking open Scripture.  I wish you could hear him.  About mid-week I'll say "seein' the lesson yet?"...and he'll say "not yet".  Then about Friday when I ask again, he'll GRIN and say "well, there MAY be a lesson there...".  It's an adrenaline rush to depend on the Lord.

Mike is my greatest blessing of 2011, followed by the kids and the grands.  But there's someone else who has poured into my life this year.  Check out the lady to the left in pink.

I hang around Bobbie because she's a glowing Hebrews 10:24 billboard.  "And let us take thought of how to spur one another on to love and good works."  Bobbie is a "spurrior" whose delight in the Lord is catching.


[Note: the other women in the pic are Bobbie's daughter/granddaughters.  Don't be fooled by their gorgeous cheekbones 'cuz they're more than just pretty faces.  Their love for Jesus translates into outposts in Africa, an island nation, and a couple of stateside spots (plus their brother on the left coast).  Love this precious family.]


Just wanted to close with some pics of what Mike and I have counted as richness this year.  It is touchy to talk about richness when we know no one has a perfect life...or a completely easy one.  In fact, several dear friends are walking through a HOT fire right now.  Our prayer for them is that the Breath of Heaven would (in the words of an Amy Grant song) "hold them together" .  It helps to remember the final chapter is yet to be written.   


Mike and I wish your family a joyful celebration of that first noel when Mary and Joseph were caught completely offguard.  The Giver of unexpected blessings...that is our God!

PURE TEBOW

Why does Tim Tebow get under people's skin?  Why would goodness cause such chafing and irritation?  Do they think he's a poser?  If a showboater is all about the show...is Tebow all "show"?  


Here are three things that come to mind about Tim.


1.  He proclaims the virtue of saving sex for marriage.
DARE we mock what God set out?  Our sex-soaked world runs hard to diminish that choice.  But even the stats are in favor of waiting.


Commandments and emotional residuals aside, recreational sex brings promiscuity/STDs/unwanted pregnancies, and associated medical risks.  No one thinks they will get pregnant, but it happens.  Stats say people who live together before marriage are more likely to divorce.  And they say a woman's likelihood for marriage is dimished if she has a child out of wedlock (by age 35, only 70% of unwed mothers are married vs. 88% of women who have not had a child).   http://www.drphil.com/articles/article/351    There are alarming stats for how single parenthood causes poverty/public assistance.
  
We may act like sex has no consequences, but it is powerful. http://thefreshxpress.com/2009/04/what-happened-to-saving-sex-for-marriage/

In the professional sports arena of bad behavior, why in the world would people not be delighted to have GOOD behavior modeled for their kids?  

2.  His knee-drop and eye-black cause others to think about God.  
Tim Tebow reaches for high ground and isn't that wordless leadership? 

If people feel Tebow is forcing his religion on them, perhaps they are really feeling conviction.  Conviction in an honest moment is profitable.

3.  He is positive and encouraging of others, including those who treat him poorly.  

Here is a short excerpt from an interview done with Tim Tebow and Peter King, writing for SPORTS ILLUSTRATED:

*******

King:  Before I let Tebow go, I asked him if anyone after the game...coaches, players, execs...had said anything memorable to him.

Tebow:  "Everybody was happy...but I'll tell you one thing that happened during the week that I remember".

King:  Good, I thought.  Maybe it was John Fox sidling up to him and saying something sportingly profound like "Son, we're going to ride that left arm and those legs to the SuperBowl."

Tebow:  "I had an opportunity to talk with a kid named Blake Appleton from Florida on Thursday.  He's a leukemia patient who's just been moved to hospice.  And after the game, when I was being interviewed on TV, I got to say his name.  That's what I'm proud of today.  I let him know people cared about him.  I let him know God has a plan for him."

King:  And that was the end of the Tebow interview.  He had to rush to get on the bus to the airport.  Except...

Tebow:  "Have a good day, Mr. King.  And God bless you."

********

Pure Tebow.  

He may be polarizing, but when Christ was on earth, not everyone liked what He said.  Keep walking your talk, Tim.

And please, Lord, increase the ears that hear.

FACT AND FICTION

This pastor from the fourth century was born in what today would be known as Turkey.  Forensic pathologists have used computers to reconstruct his image from his 1,600-year-old skull.  Here is what history teaches about Nicholas of Myra.

...he was a short man (5 ft) who lived from 270-346AD

...born into wealthy Greek family who lived in coastal city on Mediterranean

...orphaned as a child; thereafter had a heart for children

...secret gift-giver with liberality toward those in need

...nasal bone between eyes broken; attributed to 

persecution of Christians under Diocletian

...devoted to Christ and served as pastor and bishop of the church

...had a seat at Council of Nicaea which produced our Apostles Creed

Why mention this good man?  You are seeing him everywhere...at the mall and ringing a bell @WalMart.  The man is St. Nicholas.  More olive-skinned than Scandinavian...more like a fighter than a jolly old elf...you may be wondering how in the world St. Nicholas morphed into Santa Claus.

The answer begins in 1822 when Dr. Clement Clark Moore wrote this whimsical poem for his children.    http://www.nightbeforechristmas.biz/moore.htm  (Note:  the New York Times takes issue with who really wrote the poem.)        http://www.nytimes.com/2000/10/26/arts/26NIGH.html

Apparently Dr. Moore (who taught classics and languages at a New York seminary) was always embarrassed that in light of the body of his scholarly theological works, he would be best known for "Twas the Night Before Christmas".

Then in 1947, MIRACLE ON 34th STREET perpetuated the caricature of the jolly old man.

It's interesting to think back and watch a truly heroic man become a fictional character that is held up to children...while frankly, confusing them.  Santa knows when you've been naughty or nice?  He sees you when you're sleeping and knows when you're awake?  Whew.  He's been assigned some pretty divine qualities along the way. 

St. Nicholas was a real man who loved God's Word and loved to give.  He lived a productive life imitating/serving his Savior.  

So we can tell Virginia "Yes, there really IS a St. Nicholas.  And he deserves a lot more credit".

http://us1.campaign-archive2.com/?u=5369bb601ac44bfdda928110b&id=a2aaae7edb&e=e7c870fc44

FETCH THE FIBRILLATOR

 Our church has about a half-dozen seasoned members who have spent time on the heart floor of our hospital lately.

None of them eat like this.  They are not even overweight...their tickers are just troubled.

So it seemed fitting that our congregation should consider getting a defibrillator.

Of course with a population in their 70's and 80's...some immediately said "Oh, don't bring me back!  If He is calling, I'm ready to go."

Others allowed as how they were counting on their heavenly home, but knew that a heart attack was survivable and they wanted to live.

Some wondered about operating the machine and being legally vulnerable. Sad times when fear of legal action trumps compassion.

The defibrillator people assure us they send out a trainer...and the device is so sophisticated that it will not allow a shock unless all the signs line up for pushing the button.

So the vote was FOR the big purchase.  Now we have to get the list of those who want to be revived...and the list of those who don't.  Then we try not to get confused.  One lady said "I want Mike to operate the machine for me...he will read the instructions." Yes, some of us are more detail-oriented.

 Our new defibrillator can be a huge blessing for our church.  In September when one of our members had a heart spell, I can say that the impotence of sitting while the episode played out was excruciating.

I believe the Lord unlocks knowledge for our good and a defibrillator in a school or church or public area is a terrific tool.  We marvel at technology and the outflow of things that earlier went unimagined.  I can speak proudly of my new knee and how that has made life easier for me.

But technology has also allowed us into uncharted and gray areas.  We now decide whether to take away life-giving measures.  We decide what to do with artificially inseminated embryos.  We clone.  We're getting pretty big for our britches.

Some things cross the line into "His business".  Can we agree that there IS a line to honor?

I certainly can't assume to know His prerogatives or plans.

Didn't He say "My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts, and my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine."  Isaiah 55.8

I sure wouldn't consider applying for His position.

Jehovah God says "I am the Lord and there is no other." Isaiah 45.5

NOT IN KANSAS ANYMORE

 "Toto, we're not in Kansas any more!"  But Mike and I WERE there last week.

Mike has had his heart set on a ginormous KS deer for some time. Surely this would be the year.  He found a guide (that he likes enough to adopt) and he made big plans.  And I got to go along!

Hunting gives Mike "space" and he competes against himself/the elements/the wildlife (a manthing).  My needs were satisfied and then some because I got to take books and beads and no schedule.

We drove less than two hours from Fayetteville and were in Kansas.  Actually, we were on the outskirts of Joplin, Missouri.  We were sissy-camping on the concrete RV parking lot of Downstream Casino (exit 1 right on the Missouri and Oklahoma border) and 17 miles from where Mike was to hunt.  

The driveway into the casino is in Missouri, the casino is in Oklahoma, and the parking lot was in Kansas.  I guess they have figured out how to get the taxes divided.... 

Because it was freezing @night, the camping crowd was very sparse.  My security needs were met with lots of cameras and security that drove by periodically.  To encourage visitors, the casino gives you three free nights on the camping space and then it is $15/night.  People brag about the buffets at casinos, so I was satisfied to lollygag in the camper and then buffet at night.  The first night the meal was good, but the air quality made the trip our last.  Mike later talked to a worker who proudly said they spent $250,000 on the air system.  But I don't know how anyone breathes in that smokey air.

The first morning, Mike left "home" at 4:30 a.m. and returned about 6:30 p.m.

I reached my goal of doing nothing, but sadly Mike didn't reach his goal.  He got no deer after sitting 12 hours on a stand in weather that began in the 20's, with wind gusts up to 25 mph.  Mike had layers of down, hand warmers, and a peanut butter sandwich.  Plus anticipation.

Over the four days, Mike saw several bucks...but he was high-grading and wanted to go home with "BigBoy".

He did make several new friends including the casino shuttle driver who was a Quapaw Indian.  Because the Quapaws are from Arkansas...and because Mike loves the Indian culture...they struck up several big conversations.  You may know that Quapaw means "downstream people" (hence the casino name).

A retail opportunity fell out of the blue and into my lap.  Friends had told me of a great place out from Joplin called Sandstone Gardens, a shop on 68 acres which has home and garden decor and a tea room and lots of concrete statuary.  I had no idea that it was @our exit!  The inside was a feast of eye candy and the creative juices flowed.  I found part of Laura and Beth's Christmas there.

 Then on the weekend, we met our neighborhood Community Group in Branson and went with them to Silver Dollar City.

Here are all fourteen of us on the front row of a great production of Scrooge's Christmas.

Sunday morning we had a worship service with a guitar and communion and we all shared the verse that had propped us up longterm.

What a grand time of feasting on God's grace!