A memorial service was held at our church today. Bill, our new brother in Christ who was baptized 24 days ago, met his Savior this past Sunday..exactly 3 weeks after this picture was taken. In the words of my hubby, it was one of most uplifting memorial services he’s been part of.

In the days since Bill died there has also been much rejoicing in our church as so many people have shared how Bill impacted them, or what a blessing it was to minister to him. But the BEST story concerns his very first contact with our church. It happened on a Saturday night, as our Celebrate Recovery service was getting ready to start. A monsoon rainstorm was happening, and one couple was checking doors and helping people inside. As the wind continued to howl, they found a man pressed up against the side of the church, desperate to get out of the rain, with a bicycle beside him. There were two small plastic bags filled with cans tied to the bike, but another bag had been torn away, and cans were scattering across the parking lot. This couple asked the man if he was there for CR, and he asked “what’s that?” He was simply there to escape the rain!

They invited him inside..and he began coming ocassionally. Eventually the church found out he was homeless..and had sometimes lived in his car..and the bike was pretty much all he owned. And you now know the rest of the story..this man was our Bill. Because of a huge storm, Bill was at church trying to escape rain..and because of who our GOD is, He had Bill at church because He was much more interested in Bill escaping the penalty of sin..an eternity separated from God! One person, two different objectives..and yet! God arranged it all, because of one person!!

This story has yet another side to it. Thirteen years ago, God led our church to build our current sanctuary..the very building Bill was leaning against! Before and during the building process, we had many many prayer meetings, asking God to bless and fill the new building with people we didn’t even know. During our prayer walk around the freshly poured foundation, we had four chairs in the middle of it..representing the people God would save there. We are in a main highway, and our pastor was even so bold as to pray that God’s Spirit would be so overpowering that people would be irresitably drawn there! Many people knelt in front of those chairs, praying for those future Christians. And many have come…but none so literally as Bill.

So what’s the point?? GOD. God can, and God will. He will lead us in directions that we don’t know the way to, to pray for things we’ve yet to see, and to watch Him LITERALLY answer those prayers! NONE of us knew the names of ANY of those who would come.. but God did! Bill had no idea that he…broken, dirty, homeless, and almost hopeless..would find himself huddled under a church awning that would lead to his salvation..but God did!!

Are you a “Bill”? God can save you from anything, anywhere, for His glory. And like Bill, He just may use you to impact a whole church, and a whole host of people you will never meet..but that will meet Jesus because of you!

Are you praying for a “Bill”?? Are you asking Him to bring people to you..your church..your workplace..that need Him? Or are you praying for a “Bill” already in your life who you are just about convinced will never change???

Then these three words are for you: AND YET GOD!!! Amen!!

I’ve heard that question a lot this week. And my answer is the same: Bill. Smith? Jones? From Moultrie?? Nope, my answer is still the same..just Bill. Now the group of people I have been sharing with are a fine group, with very good hearts, just curious. About Bill. And his story. And why I generally had either tears or a huge smile on my face when I was talking about him!

Why? Because here is his story. Bill is almost 65 years old. He is cut from very different cloth, and always gone his own way regardless of what other people thought. While I don’t know a whole lot about him, I do know some. He’s not “from around here”. In fact, most of his life has been lived in another nearby state. I’m not sure what he ever did for a living, but I do know a life of drugs and addiction framed everything. He’s had a very, very hard life; losing one child along the way to death, having one still in prison, and having a third who has been estranged from him on and off.

However, he came to us (our church) through our Celebrate Recovery program..a nationwide program we are a part of, that helps heal all who are willing from their hurts, habits, and hangups. When he first came, he was homeless, living in woods near our church. After awhile we became aware of this and through another chain of events we were able to purchase a very tiny camper that he reluctantly agreed to live in, but it was still very primitive living. As he became more active in attending both CR and church, Bill became more comfortable with us and started sharing more. And became more “himself” with us…which meant a lot. Bill has a very short attention span, and he thinks nothing strange about getting up out of a service, wandering around the church some, and coming back in, only to repeat once of twice more during the same service! He isn’t rude, just himself..and we have adopted measures to ensure his safety during those times. He doesn’t dress well, and he of course doesn’t have the best hygiene. However, he also has become very involved in helping with CR, loving the small responsibilites he has been given. And during this time, Bill found Jesus..and accepted him as his Lord and Savior!

A few months ago, Bill began to look and feel unwell. He became jaundiced, and because of his limited understanding ad skepticism of doctors, it was quite an ordeal to get him to one. He held out as long as he could, but eventually he was so sick that one of the doctors in our church made arrangements to get him seen. When the diagnosis finally came, it was not good..cancer in several places and a very poor prognosis. And it was at that time that Bill began to express his heart’s desire to be baptized. Except. His health continued to decline, and there were several weeks he was almost too sick/weak to even be in his wheelchair at church. So we began to pray, and enlist others to pray, to ask God to please strengthen him so that he could be.

So guess who’s in the photo above? You are right!! It was our overwhelming privilege to see him baptized this past Sunday! Not a dry eye in the house! Bill came up out of that water with the weight of all his life off his shoulders, because he was able to publicly testify to everyone there that JESUS has him now, and that He is living for Him! And one of the coolest things?? He has also been a testimony to hundreds of others! Because our services are online, everyone who sees his baptism will hear his story. Everyone of us who got back with our prayer partners knows his story. Everyone that has posted his baptismal pictures on FB, Instagram, etc has allowed his story to continue to testify..and we believe great things are still yet to come.

Bill probably has very little time left here, and he came to Jesus very late in life. And yet! God has the final say, and God can and does redeem anyone, anywhere, and then use them mightily for His purposes! So when people ask me “who is that again?” the correct answer is this: that’s Bill..my brother in Christ, born again by the blood of the Lamb, a living testimony to God’s amazing grace, on his way to see Jesus..and that’s the BEST answer ever!!

When I was a teenager, I heard a song that captivated me. It’s not a spiritual song, but the lyrics are very moving: “Lord I’m one, Lord I’m two, Lord I’m three, Lord I’m four, Lord I’m five hundred miles away from home.” And it goes on to say “Not a shirt on my back, not a penny to my name, Lord I can’t go back home this ole way.” Although I had yet to experience any major times of wandering and alone-ness, the lyrics stayed with me. I pictured a tired and forlorn person, desperately homesick, and struggling to find their way back.

Even as I have gotten older, and frankly forgotten some of the lyrics, this song still resides deep in my soul. Through many events in my life..moves, losses, deaths of loved ones..I have come to understand and feel this song in new ways. Of course, Jesus spoke it best in the parable of the prodigal son, who truly did NOT have a penny to his name, and his utter reluctance to ho home that way..but he went.

The last few weeks my life has been a struggle. Every single day. Meds that I am on had to be changed, and it sent me into a deep, personal struggle to regain what I call a sense of “normal” me. Hour by hour, sometimes minute by minute, I fought to not give in to the temporary feeling of depression and sadness, and to try and remember that better times were ahead. And at last I have made it to the other side, with new meds working well, and new side effects under control. But WOW. Really.

And yet! Through all of those weeks, and hours, and days, I was NEVER alone! Yes I had my hubby, and a couple of very good friends, but I had THE Friend, Jesus, with me and carrying me through it all. There were so many days when I couldn’t see that…and when I felt even more than 500 miles away from God and His reach…but hallelujah that was never true. God was always right by my side, and even though I felt penniless and broken in His presence, I could go HOME. Home to His loving arms and comfort, home to His encouraging Word, His grace, and His mercy. He didn’t mind how I “looked” or how I felt..He just got me through to the other side, and welcomed me every time I sought Him.

There’s a beautiful Scripture that applies here, and it has also always been one of my favorites: “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your Presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in hell, behold You are there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me.” (Psalm 139:7-10) Isn’t that awesome? I am once again living proof that this promise is TRUE..and that we serve a God who always, always, always keeps His promises!

So how about you? Are you in the wilderness? Have you just come out of it? Or do you have that unsettling feeling that you’re about to head there? Then trust me. Or better yet trust HIM. Read this Psalm, over and over, and all the other promises in His Word. And realize again that God’s true, born again by His Spirit believers are NEVER alone, and that He is s ALWAYS faithful to bring us through anything we face, anywhere we are!!

I heard a fascinating story the other day and was astonished by its spiritual applications. It seems a man worked at a fertilizer manufacturing plant and had to pass by the same security guard every night. One night, with no explanation, the man walked by the guard pushing a wheelbarrrow full of something the guard couldn’t see that was covered by a blanket. The guard was immediately suspicious, and went to search the warehouse to see if he could spot anything missing. Nothing was out of order. The next night, same scene, wheelbarrow with blanket over it. This continued several nights until the guard could no longer overlook it, certain the missing items woukld be very noticeable by now. He went to the head of the department and was told the employee had quit that day. The guard looked relieved and explained how worried he had been about stolen items and how glad he was the guy had quit. The supervisor looked at the guard and took him to an empty room, which had once been filled with wheelbarrows…

Did you get it? The guard was so worried about what he thought he saw, what he thought was going on, that he TOTALLY missed what really WAS going on! And God has used this to remind me of that very important principle in my own life. In our world today it seems like the bad guys are winning and the good guys are losing..big time. It appears that at every turn Christians are losing their rights..losing the fight for this freedom or that law. There is a lot of truth to that, no doubt. Moral values and religious freedoms are being squeezed and squeezed out of society, often in the name of tolerance. It is a constant struggle to understand who is upset at whom, and what any of that has to do with disregarding the laws of God and sin.

However…just like the guard, it seems like our focus might be on the wrong thing. We, as born again believers, have begun to push back, and to do it loudly. We are endeavoring to make Jesus known to the world, and quick to point out how we feel we are being limited. When there is a loud line of protesters against a Christian doctrine or truth, there is now an equally loud line of Christians shaking signs and fists right back at them. And satan is smiling.

Why? Because he has done exactly what the employee did to the guard..he is distracting us by what we think is happening, so he can carry out his real agenda! We have forgotten several things..(1) that Jesus is the ultimate victor, (2) that people are not our enemy, but satan is, and (3) the only way we can accomplish ANY change is this..sharing the Gospel over and over and over again, and then living it out! Watching the stealing going on right under our noses, we have become distracted by what we think the battle is about, and not noticing what is really going on.

So what’s solution? Just this. The next time you feel anger welling up in yourself, and disgust for those involved in dismantling some new part of our belief system, stop. Look closer! Ask God for guidance, and ask Him to show you what to do. And then, get up, get out, and go share Jesus with someone!!

“Come now you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow.” James 4:13

It has been a difficult last 3 months to say the least. On December 28, we lost avery precious friend after a long and difficult struggle with cancer. On January 13 we lost my sister-in-law (Robert’s younger sister) after an even more brutal struggle with cancer, filled with pain and suffering. And we now know that his older sister in all likelihood has lung cancer in addition to COPD. And just this week I lost my great uncle to Alzheimers. Sorrow and sadness have been our frequent guests…and yet!!

AND YET!! Each of these beautiful people in our lives were (and are) born again, Jesus loving, and daily testimonies to the love and grace of our Lord and Savior. So while we have great loss here, they have NOTHING but great gain! They have seem the fulfillment of their faith and trust, and are now in heaven rejoicing with all the saints and living in the very presence of God. What a wonderful transformation compared to their last days here! For my uncle to know not only who he is again, but also where..and enjoy all of heaven in full knowledge! For my sister-in-law, who had so little here, to gain a mansion! For my friend to be able to give up the daily struggle to beeathe and fight pain and to luve where there is no more pain or sorrow!

So what now? How do we get beyond all of this, adjust to the losses, accept a new normal without those we loved? How do we still believe that God is good? His Word and all its promises, and OUR relationship with Him. His grace that gives us every new morning, and no matter how difficult that new day appears, clinging to Him minute by minute, knowing He has a reason for giving us that day. Trusting in Him that there is a reason for what we are going through..then doubting it..the trusting..then doubting..over and over till the day ends and we can once again see that He carried us.

And then this: recognizing the small, beautiful things and moments He gives us along the way. Yesterday was a beautiful day..ordinary workday, then off work… and yet! It was employee appreciation day at work, and I had a free doughnut at breakfast, and then free fresh-Mex tacos for lunch paid for by our owner. I served a precious couple yesterday that were celebrating their 68th, yes 68th anniversary! I listened to them share a few minutes about their marriage. I saw a little girl get so excited about her Curious George book in her Chickfila kids meal, and then minutes later passsd by her table again to catch her mother reading it to her, both of them absorbed in it. Robert, Mom and I went to Valdosta yesterday afternoon to get our motorcycle out of the shop, and got to eat at Cracker Barrell (our favorite) because of a gift certificate from friends, and then when Mom and I were alone in the car on the way back each of us quietly singing along with the contemporary Christian radio!

Do you see a pattern here? God is SO good. He is SO merciful. He is Grace. He is King of the world. And yet He knows when we hurt, and when we need Him most. He knows how to give us moments of beauty no matter what we face. And as this old old hymn says,

“Day by day, and with each passing moment, strength I find to meet my trials here. Trusting in my Father’s wise bestowment, I’ve no cause for worry or for fear……Help me Lord, when toil and trouble meeting, ever to take as from a father’s handone by one, the days and moments fleeting, till with Christ the Lord I stand”. Amen!

It’s that time of year again..that day that a lot of men dread, when incredible pressure is put on them to demonstrate their true love for someone in the most romantic way possible…Valentine’s Day! The hype is unending..commercials, aisle displays, all urging you to spend and spend (after just doing so at Christmas) on the one you love. Then a few days before, it’s even more intense, with the phrases “last minute gift ideas!!” and “it’s not too late to find the perfect gift!!” popping up everywhere. And sadly, you can visit any store the night of Feb 13th and find too many people desperately looking through picked over cards and gifts trying to find something presentable!

After watching all this in recent years, and after experiencing the death of my sister-in-law and a dear friend last month, God has shown me a great truth..life is too precious to live it as a last minute giver. My friend Richard knew that. He had spent decades living and working in our community, touching hundreds of lives over that time. After he died, tributes poured in from too many people to ever count about his generosity, his compassion, and his willingness to serve others. He was NOT a last minute giver!

My sister-in-law was also not a last minute giver. She had so little materially throughout her life…but she was also the first to give. She saw the need first..usually a hot meal or a bed to sleep on or an ear to listen..and never hesitated to meet it. When we would call her, it was not at all unusual at all for someone we didn’t know to answer the phone and my SIL would say, “oh that was ______ and they’re staying here a few days….”

Now before I continue, let me say this..sometimes last minute giving is all we can do. Financial gifts cannot always be given until the next paycheck. Sometimes we are not even aware of the need, but can help others when we find out. And sometimes we are in need ourselves, and are in the process of being helped! All of those are very valid and important things.

However..!! It doesn’t always cost money to give! I see elderly people and moms with young children all the time when I am grocery shopping that walk out alone and struggle to get their stuff in their car and/or wrangle with kids! First minute giving is seeing an empty preschool classroom on a Sunday morning because the teacher was running late and allowing parents to still drop off their children safely. First minute giving, basically, requires one commitment: to be alert and aware of others and their needs! It requires us to slow down a little, see what’s going on, and remember that we’re not just here for ourselves! It is a challenge, and it means sacrifice..but it is infinitely do-able, and a key neccesity in being obedient to God and luving for His glory! So next time you see a group of desperate people crowded around a card section or gift section, remember this..and go out and do some first minute giving!

I am a Christmas person..full fledged, all out happiness and enjoyment of every single Christmas thing! And I love,love, love making Christmas stuff! So my ability to crochet comes in very handy each year. And I have realized all over again this year the true Wonder of Christmas, and the impact of His birth through my very simple project.

I am using this simple shower curtain ring ($1.00 for 12) and crocheting all around it, then adding bows ($1.00 for 18), ornaments ($1.00 for 10) and a yarn ribbon (scrap yarn) to create this

Amazing, isn’t it? Not that it’s going to win any awards, or that it’s spectacular…but it looks NOTHING like it did! And let’s face it…a tree decorated with clear shower curtain rings would look weird..but a tree with wreaths is perfectly acceptable, colorful, and pretty to look at. And that’s the way I like my Christmas, just simple beauty that inspires me throughout the season. And although I try for consistency in my stitches and decor, not one of these is really identical..they no longer look like all the other shower curtain rings, and they don’t look like each other..they have their own special design and attraction.

All of which leads me to the point of this blog..the first Christmas, the best Christmas, was just like that. When I was debating my project for this year, I went to the store and just browsed awhile for inspiration. And believe it or not, the shower curtain rings did NOT jump up and say “pick us! Pick us! I saw them, remembered an old craft idea, and bought them because I could USE them. Sound familiar? Mary and Joseph were the same way. They did not know God’s plan for redemption, and if they had they would not likely have been clamoring for the opportunity to be supernaturally pregnant out of wedlock and have that to explain! But God chose them, because He could use them.

As in any Christmas craft, I am not making my wreaths for myself..the joy is in giving them to others, blessing them with a little sparkle and hope for Christmas. Likewise, God did not have Jesus come into this world for Himself..He did not craft the Baby Jesus in Mary’s womb except to save us, bless us, and give us the gift of hope through eternal life! Isn’t that wonderful? And while my transformation of plastic rings is pretty, it is temporary. God’s transformation, however, is spectacular, overwhelming, perfect, and eternal! When you know this in your heart, and have submitted to His will for your life, you will experience this for yourself.

So how are you as we begin this Christmas season? Ard you a plastic ring in a sea of other plastic rings with no hope of change? Or have you come to know that there is a Master Craftsman, who has chosen you to be saved and recreated in Him? Have you experienced His transforming power and become a brand new, one of a kind design, different from every other one in this world?

If you don’t know Jesus, there’s no better time than Christmas to seek Him! And if you do know Him, and are feeling a little jaded or useless, maybe it’s time to review the wonder of the manger, and let Him “dust you off” and get you back to your unique purpose and design for His glory!

I just had an experience that was hard to believe and now the Lord is pounding away at my heart about the spiritual lesson involved. We are on a breakfast date, and because the only local bank branch we have now is in a nearby city, we decided to go to the Waffle House there. We have eaten at this WH many times, and always have a good experience. However. This morning it was packed, and although they had plenty of help, the cooks were going 90 to nothing trying to keep up with the orders. I ordered a texas toast breakfast samdwich, and just happened to look at the cooking area at the time my sandwich was done and ready to be cut in half. And I watched, to my horror, as she put my sandwich down, on the cutting board, with NO PLATE separting the sandwich and the board, and cut it!! THEN it was put on a plate, and the board was wiped with a wet rag that was sitting in a pile of rags! I waited, praying that was not MY sandwich, but sure enough it was presented to me about 15 seconds later.

I am seldom speechless, but when our sweet waitress put it down I was. I was trying to figure out how to politely let her know what O had just seen without being rude, and I managed to just tell her what I had seen without any of what I was thinking. She asked if I wanted it remade, and I honestly couldn’t answer..I was at a loss because a new one would take 20 minutes more and the crowd was still thick. I finally decided that it had only been on the board for about 15 secs max, and that I would eat it and just pray no harm came. And so I did. So far, so good. And as I continued to glance over at the cutting board station, I noticed that every sandwich/food after that was always on a plate when it was cut!

And yet….God had so much more in mind for me today than just breakfast food. He showed me clearly through this how I am with sin in my own life, and MY efforts to clean it up and hide it from Him. Too often in my daily journey with Him I stray from His goal for me..holiness. I do not believe the cook was trying to deliberately break health protocol by putting my food directly onto the board. I do think, however, that in the rush and stress of the moment she was taking a shortcut to save time by not following all the rules..and she was willing to go there to look more efficient. Who knows…she might have even been praying no harm would come! But she was participating in something that she knew was wrong, could harm someone else, could get her into trouble, and thought no one would notice. Ouch! Sound familiar?? And just like the cook, who offered me a new sandwich that she had cut on a plate (I watched her) it was not enough to replace the damage done in my mind from seeing the other.

Just like I did this morning, however, God is ALWAYS watching us! He can see all the shortcuts we take, even when we think (and pray) that no one is watching. He sees us then take a dirty rag (our righteousness) and try to clean up the residue we have left. He also knows that dirty rag has been sitting there with other dirty rags (our efforts, our schemes) and knows the whole thing is corrupt and dirty throughout. He knows,too, that our actions can cause harm to ourselves, and also to others as we sin, and that only His grace can cover everything as we repent. And when we try to replace our “bad deed” with one done correctly, it too is not enough.

So what should have happened? In an ideal world, the sandwich would have been remade, yes..but the cutting board would also have been replaced, and all the old handy, dirty cleaning rags removed and replaced with new ones. And that’s exactly what we should do in our own lives. When God points out our sin, we should immediately STOP. And let Him replace everything with HIS forgiveness, mercy, and love, and then let HIM recreate us again more like His image! To Him be the glory for His faithfulness!

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies…” Psalm 23:5a

I first learned the lesson of the picnic when Robert and I were dating. We took a day trip to the beach and when we got hungry for lunch we began to explore our options. Between our sandy wet selves and our limited budget, we were stumped until Robert told me to just follow him…so I did. We walked to the convenience store and went in, got two frozen pizzas, popped them in the store microwave, got drinks, paid for it, and went outside and ate on the curb! Probably one of the best pizzas I’ve ever had, and we still laugh about it today.

Fast forward to our honeymoon in Colorado, and we picnicked on a mountain after riding horseback 2 hours, eating food the cowboys cooked in tin plates over an open fire! Amazing!

We settled into a tiny house, and began life together with 2 kids, lots of bills, major child support, and very little left over. However, our tiny 1,100 square foot house had a tiny screened in porch, and the first thing Robert got for it was a picnic table. That table took up the whole porch, but we didn’t care..it was a great place to eat, relax, and take a break from “routine”. It’s amazing how fine hotdogs and chips appear when you’re outside eating on paper plates! That table got a lot of use during the 15 yesrs we lived there.

We then went on the mission field and moved to Denver. Living in a tiny loft apartment on the third floor did not provide a lot of outdoor time, and though we were across the street from a beautiful park, our jobs were 45 minutes away, our hours were long, and ministry took up any remaining time. BUT! We worked across the street from each other, and the shop Robert worked at was directly behind a convenience store surrounded by grass and one tree, and a bagel shop connecting to that lot. We ate many many picnic lunches in the middle of all that…noise, cars, music, you name it..but we had great times just again stepping out of “routine” and being together.

Since moving back to Georgia we have intentionally had picnics every vacation, and occasionally on our screened-in side porch. We just got back from a mini-vacay, and picnicked at a scenic overlook in a state park..and again I marveled at how relaxing and refreshing it was. There is nothing better and I come away with a renewed appreciation for God’s creation, and for all His blessings to us!

So what’s the point of all this? Here it is, the lesson of the picnic: it is simple, easy, relaxing, and refreshes the heart and soul by taking a break from hectic lives and schedules. The pure joy of simple and quiet cannot be underestimated, and the need that we all have for those moments of refocusing and regrouping is often ignored. That is not how God planned it though. The second verse of the Psalm referenced above reveals that: “He makes me to lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside the still waters.” Those are active verbs! He makes, He leads..all indicators that we are to take time out to refresh. And please notice the context of verse 5: “in the presence of my enemies”. Is it ever quiet, peaceful, or relaxing to be in the presence of our enemies in our own strength?? Of course not! But God has promised us this…that if we look to Him, take time in His Word in trust and faith, and worship Him in our trials, then HE is capable (where we are not) of preparing a table..a picnic!..in the middle of ALL of it..and restoring and refreshing our souls!

So! Are you in a trial? Facing enemies? Going under with stress? Look to Him, and enjoy a “picnic”..and see how much better you are able to stand and overcome in HIS power.

There are a lot of benefits of being a child of the living Lord, Jesus Christ. The most amazing of those, however, is the connection we have as brothers and sisters in the Lord….it’s a beautiful thing that cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

This is especially conforting as I grow older and watch the size of my earthly family shrink. We were not a huge family to start with, and even as I have gotten older the number of births and deaths have been relatively the same and have kept it the about sane size.

AND YET! God knew how hard ghis life would be, and has given us this incredible gift of brotherhood!Mom’s recent surgery is an example. Since Mom goes to the same church we do, our whole church was of course right with us, praying and supporting us. But that’s not the sum total of our spiritual family. All three of us have other friends and extended family who are also children of the Lord, and they were praying as well! Then expand that by adding mine and Robert’s FB friends, and the numbers start to get bigger than I want to count! And finally, but probably not totally, I have been blessed with an amazing job, where I have been blessed with hundreds of new brothers and sisters! The biggest joy I found in her surgery time was the day of and the day after, when I went to three separate places, stores, and someone in each place asked me about her and I knew they were praying too..and praying not to just any God, but to THE God Who created everything!

Awesome, isn’t it? And this story goes on and on, as God adds new people to our family every day. So what’s the point? It’s this: never, ever, ever underestimate the size of or power of God’s church…your family! I forget that a lot. I hear the noise of this world drowning out the prayers and encouragement from my fellow believers. I see the news headlines daily and believe that I am in a minority group. I feel like I am a child again, with my sister and I playing softball with friends, having to join together with another family to face the family of nine next door who had a whole team by themselves! I forget to stop and leave ok around me, and count..yes, COUNT, those I see who I know love the Lord and are living for Him!

The world would have us believe, especially in certain parts of our coontry, that we as Christians are alone, pitiful, and dependent on our own puny resources as we walk through life. They want us to forget that true Biblical, comforting, encouraging help is only a phone call, text, FB post or Tweet away. Why? Because there is power in numbers. And we will ALWAYS have more! God is a majority all by Himself, but we get to “tag along” anyway as He uses us to work in His world!

The holidays are just around the corner, and that’s when it seems the whole world stops and gathers, and counts the number of their loved ones. But this year, when that time comes, let’s have the courage to look around and NOT be discouraged by who isn’t there. Let’s practice looking around NOW..and being reminded of how BIG our most important family really is! After all, there is power in numbers….and God calls us to remember what power we have in each other to face everything in life!