SONday Musings, Here I Am, Lord.

 Good SONday morning, Friends.  I hope you are having a blessed and beautiful day of worship and rest.  I am doing both.  Listening to the following song and message for today, as I am at home instead of at church.  I've been battling a sinus/allergy/laryngitis issue all week long.  It's been rather "quiet" here at home as a result.  But you know I chose the word "Listen" for my "One Word" for 2023, or rather I believe the Lord chose that word for me...either way, I believe it is a word that God wanted me to pay attention to at this time in my life.  Listen...

Here I Am, Lord

I, the Lord of sea and sky

I have heard my people cry

All who dwell in dark and sin

My hand will save

I have made the stars of night

I will make their darkness bright

Who will bear my light to them?

Whom shall I send?

Here I am, Lord

Is it I, Lord?

I have heard You calling in the night

I will go, Lord

If You lead me

I will hold Your people in my heart

I, the Lord of wind and flame

I will tend the poor and lame

I will set a feast for them

My hand will save

Finest bread I will provide

'Til their hearts be satisfied

I will give my life to them

Whom shall I send?

Here I am, Lord

Is it I, Lord?

I have heard You calling in the night

I will go, Lord

If You lead me

I will hold Your people in my heart

I will hold Your people in my heart

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Dan Schutte

Here I Am, Lord lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

Isaiah 6:8 

8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

“Whom shall I send,

And who will go for Us?”

Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

God also speaks these words back to us through His Word again in Isaiah 58...read on:

Isaiah 58:6-9

“Is this not the fast that I have chosen:

To loose the bonds of wickedness,

To undo the heavy burdens,

To let the oppressed go free,

And that you break every yoke?

7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,

And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out;

When you see the naked, that you cover him,

And not hide yourself from your own flesh?

8 Then your light shall break forth like the morning,

Your healing shall spring forth speedily,

And your righteousness shall go before you;

The glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.

9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;

You shall cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’

As we listen to God's voice and obey His Word, He will reveal Himself to us and say, "Here I am..."

It's a two way street...we listen and call out to God, and He hears us and responds.  What a Mighty God we serve!  As we listen to Him, He listens to us...as we respond to His call, He responds to our call. 

If you continue listening to the video above, the pastor's sermon is from Matthew 11, entitled, "Don't Doubt in the Darkness What God Has Shown You in the Light".   It really seems to go along with this this same theme...as we listen to God's Word, we are to believe His Word and trust Him to do exactly as He has promised.  Don't doubt what His Word has revealed to you...walk in faith believing...answer His call on your life..."Here I am, Lord...send me."

I'm not entirely sure where all of this will lead me...I know in the past, when I've truly surrendered my will to God's will and humbly said, "Here I am, Lord...send me..." , we've ended up being sent to some pretty interesting places.  We are at an age now where I don't expect God will be "sending" us anywhere new or different...but then again, one never knows.  One thing I have learned in life, 'never say never'.  As long as we have breath in our bodies we have life and purpose, and God may have some new challenge for us to accept.  But today I can't imagine what it could be.  Right now I just want to feel better...I've got this shoulder/arm issue that I 'm dealing with as well as the sinus/laryngitis issue. These are minor things compared to what many others are going through, and I am thankful for that, but nonetheless they are issues that need to be healed before I can move on to the next part of this journey.  One day at a time...with God, All things are possible...

Okay, that's all for today folks. I don't have any new pictures to speak of. Well, maybe one or two.  Last night our "kids" came over for some homemade beef vegetable soup that I made yesterday. I've been craving it and finally, with the weather cold and windy again and me not feeling quite up to par, I sent hubby to the store to buy some stew beef so I could make the soup. I made such a big pot of it that we invited the kids over to share it with us. I meant to take some pictures of the soup, but forgot.  But I did take some pictures of our grandpuppies, "Sugar and Spice", as they were watching out the glass doors toward Still Waters Pond to see what they could see...

They were watching for squirrels, cats, birds and geese.  They may have seen some or all of the above, but thankfully they were safe inside and unable to go chasing after them.

And with this sweet picture I will say good bye for now. Going to drink another cup of hot tea and maybe take a nap before hubby gets home from church

"Here I am, Lord...

Is it I, Lord?

I have heard You calling in the night..."

Tuesday 4: Pondering Odds & Ends

Pondering Odds & Ends

Welcome to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 kept up in her memory.
We offer 4 questions for you to ponder and consider each week. Hopefully they make you stop and think and even get to know yourself and other Bloggers a bit better.
Here we go discussing some personal thoughts this week....


1. Do you have a favorite gem stone? Why is it a favorite.

My favorite is a Blue Sapphire. Why? Because it's my birthstone (September), and it just seems to fit my personality and my color palette.  My hubby has given me some lovely sapphire rings and bracelets over the years. 

I enjoy wearing these two different sapphire bracelets...one is silver and the other gold, so I can wear one with whichever other jewelry I am wearing...

And this sweet ring he gave me many years ago, and I always loved it because it has 4 little diamonds, one for each of the "men in my life", hubby and our 3 sons, and the sapphire was for me.

But then he gave me this ring, and I started wearing it all the time.  The other one is a little snug for me, and this one fits better.  But I love them all.

 
2. Do you know and understand the doctrines of your religious faith?

Yes, I am a born again Christian...and my religious faith is a personal relationship with my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  My faith is not based on any one denominational creed or doctrine, however I do believe my faith is pretty well summed up in the Apostles' Creed, which is used by many different Christian denominations.  *Please note that the word "catholic" in this creed does not refer to the Roman Catholic Church, but refers to the universal church of the Lord Jesus Christ.

"I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.

And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic* Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen. " 

If you are not religious, do you have a personal doctrine you believe and live?  See above.
If this question is too personal.. tell us about your pet or favorite pastime. 

 

My faith is very important to my life...it is the basis of my existence, and I look forward to the day when I will meet Jesus face to face in heaven. Until then I will do my best to live for Him and serve Him as He directs me through prayer and reading of His Word, the Bible.  My husband and I, along with our three young sons, spent many many years serving in the pastoral ministry.  It was not an easy life, but very rewarding in so many wonderful ways.  Even though we are now retired, we are still very active in our local church. My husband teaches the adult Sunday School class and I sing in the choir and am active in the women's ministries of the church.  I am very thankful that God called us to service and that we, like the Prophet Isaiah, responded "Here am I, send me."

"Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

“Whom shall I send,

And who will go for Us?”

Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

Isaiah 6:8

Here is the video from this past Sunday's service at our church. This was pre-recorded to have available for those who cannot currently attend church services in person.  If you start at the beginning you will hear the choir singing one of my favorite old hymns, "Wonderful Grace of Jesus", and then our pastor has a wonderful message from Romans 6:1-14, which also further explains what I believe.

Here's the words to the song:

Wonderful grace of Jesus, greater than all my sin

How shall my tongue describe it? Where shall its praise begin?

Taking away my burden, setting my spirit free

For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.

Chorus:

Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus; deeper than the mighty rolling sea.

Higher than the mountain, sparkling like a fountain. All sufficient grace for even me.

Broader than the scope of my transgressions. Greater far than all my sin and shame.

O magnify the precious name of Jesus, Praise His Name!

Wonderful grace of Jesus, reaching to all the lost.

By it I have been pardoned, saved to the uttermost.

Chains have been torn asunder, giving me liberty

For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.

Chorus:

Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus; deeper than the mighty rolling sea.

Higher than the mountain, sparkling like a fountain. All sufficient grace for even me.

Broader than the scope of my transgressions. Greater far than all my sin and shame.

O magnify the precious name of Jesus, Praise His Name!

Wonderful grace of Jesus, reaching the most defiled.

By its transforming power, making him God’s dear child.

Purchasing peace and heaven for all eternity

For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.

Chorus:

Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus; deeper than the mighty rolling sea.

Higher than the mountain, sparkling like a fountain. All sufficient grace for even me.

Broader than the scope of my transgressions. Greater far than all my sin and shame.

O magnify the precious name of Jesus, Praise His Name!

Also, one more thing, I respect each and every person here and understand that not everyone will agree with what I've shared above. I certainly do not base my friendship on what others believe or do not believe, and I would not want this to become a reason for anyone to find fault or cause any kind of disagreement. We should honor each other's right to express their own personal beliefs without any cause for critical review. Thank you so much, and I look forward to reading what you share as well.

Okay, moving right along to the next question! 

3. Do you have a favorite décor style... as in classical, traditional, modern, mid century, colonial, etc?  What do you like about it?

Oh my!! My "favorite decor style" would be whatever I happen to have! LOL.  So much of our furnishings have been given to us via family heirlooms or gifts, and to be honest I have not really had much say in the overall design of our decor...it is what it is because that is what we've been given. We have rarely ever purchased any new furniture, except for a few recliners over the years and appliances. But the bulk of our furnishings came from family.  Now, don't get me wrong, I actually love what I have and have grown quite attached to it.  I've written extensively about some of the furnishings in our home over the years. If you look at the "Some Special Topics" listing in the right hand column of this blog, you will see the category for "Family Treasures". That should open up a list of blog posts that tell about different special items in our home that mean a lot to me.  Here's a picture of a few favorite items...

However, all that being said...if I had the opportunity to have a nice little cabin vacation home, I would furnish that with country rustic style, comfortable furnishings that would be considered cabin style/or lake/coastal/somewhat shabby chic...does that make any sense? That's kind of my "dream home"...Here's an idea I just found on Pinterest...that's just an idea...and probably mine would be more rustic.

Maybe more like this....well a girl can dream, can't she?

4. Are there any books or movies you want to see this summer?

To be honest I cannot think of any book or movie that I am looking forward to.  I haven't been doing as much reading as I used to...just kind of got out of the habit and spend more time here on the computer writing or reading, or watching special series of programs with my hubby on TV. I like it when we find a series that we both like and we can enjoy it together.  Otherwise, he's usually watching sports or something on YouTube, and I am doing whatever I can find to do here on the computer, if I'm not doing other stuff like cooking, cleaning...you know the routine.  And I hope to get outdoors more now that the weather is getting nicer and maybe do some more flower gardening, sitting in the swing, and taking walks or rides.  (until it gets too hot to do much outside...then it's back indoors in the A/C. )

Okay, this was fun. I hope you all participate as well over at the Tuesday 4 Linkup (HERE).  Thank you, Annie, for setting this up each week.  

Have a great day my friends!!

Tuesday 4 - All About Moving

 

Tuesday 4: All About Moving (No, I am NOT moving again).



Welcome to Tuesday 4 kept up in memory of our friend Toni Taddeo who began it several years ago. She would be so pleased to see people keeping up with it!

Let's talk about moving today.

1. How far away are you from where you grew up?

This is the front door to my parents' home, where I grew up. 

Right now we are about 69.8 miles, according to Google Maps, or about 1 hour, 22 minutes. We moved from a farm in Pennsylvania when I was almost six years old, to a small town in Florida.  I grew up in a little town called Tavares, Florida.  I loved growing up there. I lived there from the time I was in first grade and all the way through high school and until I got married and moved away. My dad built the house we lived in, and he and my mother lived there until they died, which was about 54 years from the time daddy built the house. Then, sadly, we had to sell the house, but a sweet neighbor lady bought it to have for her family to come and stay in when they came down for the winters, etc.   I miss our family home, but because my parents are no longer living there, to me there is no reason to ever go back. I would be expecting to see them waving at me from the front door, and it would just be too sad. I prefer to remember it the way it was...and I know my parents are in a much better home in heaven, waiting for me to come "home" someday.

2. Families sometimes move all over the country. Do you feel that a family should try to stay close together? 

Well, it depends on the family and the circumstances. Every family is different. In our case, my husband was called into the ministry, and that caused us to make many moves, to graduate school, seminary, and then to many different places to minister. It was hard to be away from our families back home, but we knew that we were doing what God had called us to do. It had many, many challenges and there were many bumps in the road, but again, God was with us and took  care of us in ways beyond our expectation and imagination.  And when the time came for us to change from the pastoral ministry to a different kind of occupation, we did come back closer to home so that we could be near our parents in their latter years and help take care of them.  That was a blessing that we were very thankful to be able to do, but we would never change all of the years that we were also blessed to travel and move to new places, and meet so many wonderful people and do what we knew God was calling us to do.

3. How many times have you moved in your life and would you like to share when and where you moved?

When we got married, our soloist sang the song "Whither Thou Goest, I Will Go" at our wedding. Although the song is actually quoting what Ruth said to her mother in law Naomi in the book of Ruth 1:16, the wedding song was intended to be the bride speaking to her husband:

"And Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: 

for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: 

thy people shall be my people, 

and thy God my God"

Little did I know when I chose that song to be sung at our wedding just how often I would be saying, "Whither thou goest, I will go..."  It would take a whole book to tell the whole story of all of our many moves over the past almost 52 years of marriage.  As a matter of fact, that is the book that I have always wanted to write, but probably never will.  The title of my book would be "Giant Leaps of Faith and Other Crazy Moves" if it is ever written.  I've shared some of those stories in previous blog posts over the years.  I don't want to give you a number of the times we have moved, because most people would gasp and faint if they knew.  But there was a good reason for every single move, and God was with us in every situation. Some were for better, and some seemed to be for worse, but we were together and we were answering the call of God to serve Him in the ministry, and He was always always there for us and met our needs, oftentimes in mysterious ways.   Let's just sum it up this way:  

• We started out in Florida, our home state.  Hubby was finishing his senior year in college when we got married.
• From there we went to Georgia to work at a Christian college and boarding academy
• We came back to Florida and hubby taught school and also became a Florida State Trooper, something he'd always wanted to do,  and we started our family.
• We felt the call of God to prepare for the ministry and so we moved to a graduate school to study the Bible in S.C. and also in N.C. for further study.
• We came back to Florida and began our pastoral ministry
• We moved to Ohio for further Seminary and so he could eventually complete his M.Div. all the while pastoring in churches and/or working bi-vocationally by teaching. I worked in schools or did whatever I could to help out financially, while raising our three children.
• We went back home to Florida and then to Georgia and then back to Ohio, where he completed his Doctor of Ministry degree, also while pastoring churches...
• We pastored a church in Michigan
• We pastored a church in New Hampshire
• We moved to Kansas for hubby to teach in a Christian College and I managed a bookstore, but that did not turn out to be what we thought it was going to be and we moved back to New England where our kids were.
• We lived and worked in Maine for a little while and then eventually moved back to Florida to care for our elderly parents.  Two of our adult kids moved back with us. Our middle son was married and stayed in Maine with his wife and eventually his son was born there.  Sadly, our middle son died after a four year battle with cancer.  We tried to move back to Maine to be near him during that time, but could not find work or any way to make that move. It was a very difficult time for all of us.  But at the same time, we were needed here in Florida to take care of our parents, and there really wasn't anything else we could do.  And God took care of our son in ways that we could not.  He knew what was best for all of us, and we did visit him as often as possible.  I wish we could now be closer to our grandson, who is now 21, but again, God knows what is best and we trust Him to take care of our grandson as well.
• We are retired now and still live in Florida.  Our elderly parents are all in heaven, waiting for us someday, as that will be our final move to our eternal home.

4. What brought you to where you are living now and are you happy there?

We now live in a small town in Florida, and our two remaining adult sons also live in this town. We moved here because our oldest son met a very sweet young woman who lived here, and married her and moved here. We fell in love with the little church where they were married, and longed to be settled somewhere where we could be a part of a small town church and community. And so we sold the house we were living in, which was about 30 miles from here in the middle of a national forest, and out in the boonies away from everything.  We moved here to this house on Still Waters Pond, which is lovely, and we are much closer to church, stores, doctors, hospitals, etc., and is exactly what we need for our "golden years".  Life on Still Waters Pond is very pleasant to us, and we have our two sons and daughter in law near, and we are very content and happy. 

 Even with all the moves and changes in life, I do not regret one minute of it. We have lived quite an exciting adventure, and have met so many wonderful people along the way that we could never have met if we had stayed "home".  We answered the call of God to serve Him, and He took care of the rest.  

"Then He (Jesus) said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

Matthew 4:19

"Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?” 

Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

Isaiah 6:8

Thanks for joining in!!

Now MOVE over to the Tuesday 4 page and see what others are sharing today about their moves in life!

What's Next?

Yesterday I was surprised to see this Sand Hill Crane standing all alone in our Still Waters Pond.

It is very unusual to see one alone. They are usually seen with their mate close by. This one kept looking back toward the shore, as if he was listening and watching for someone to join him.

But the longer he stood there, the more apparent it became that there was no one else coming.

Finally he started moving on across the pond, as if he was in a hurry to go somewhere.

As he reached the other end of the shore, he stopped and stood at attention, again listening and watching and waiting. I wondered if he was listening for a call from his mate, telling him where she was or that she was waiting for him on the other side. I didn't hear any sound...and if there had been any it would have been quite distinct....if you've ever heard their call, you would know what I mean. 

But he stood there listening intently, as if he could hear something that I could not. And then, suddenly (before I could get my camera focused of course), he flapped his mighty wings and lifted himself up and flew away in a hurry.

Today, being another Sunday that we cannot join together in person with our dear church family, my heart and mind is tuned in to worship.  I was thinking about this Sand Hill Crane standing there alone on the shore, waiting and listening for a call from his mate...and I thought about the church...and about myself personally.  It is as if we are all standing and waiting, listening for God's voice to give us directions for our next step.  We've been set apart for a little while, and we are getting anxious to get back into action together as The Body of Christ.

But before we can come back together, my heart tells me we need to be listening for God's voice in our own personal lives.  

We need to be seeking His direction, and preparing our hearts for the "what's next". 

I was reading in Isaiah 6, and the verse that stood out in particular for me this morning is

Isaiah 6:8

"Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

"Whom shall I send,

and who will go for Us?"

Then I said, "Here am I! Send me." 

Also I was reading in the Gospel of John 20:19-23, when Jesus appeared to His disciples after His resurrection, and in verse 19 it tells us that "the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, and Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, 

"Peace be with you."

And then in verse 21, Jesus said to them again:

"Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you."

22. "And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, 

"Receive the Holy Spirit."

Jesus gave the disciples a command in Matthew 28:19-20 to:

"Go therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son 

and of the Holy Spirit,

teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you;

and lo, 

I am with you always, even to the end of the age." 

Amen.

We have this commission to go.  We've been resting and waiting and hopefully preparing our hearts for the "what's next".  God has work for us to do when we come back together. The way things are going in this world, we may not have much time left to keep sharing the Gospel freely.

  

This little song came to mind this morning as I was sitting here thinking about these things, and this is the prayer of my heart today.  What about you?  It may help us to figure out the "What's Next?" question as we ponder and pray and LISTEN for God's voice.  

Here I Am, Lord, Is It I, Lord?

Praying you have a blessed and beautiful SONday. Let us not forget Whose day this is.

It is the Lord's Day.

Amen.

Sermon Notes: Here I Am, Lord

Isaiah 6:8

"Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

"Whom shall I send,

and who will go for Us?"

Then I said, "Here am I! Send me."

We sang the following song as a hymn today at church, and it was all I could do to get through the whole song without choking up and crying...

"Here I am Lord"

I, the Lord of sea and sky, I have heard My people cry. All who dwell in dark and sin, My hand will save. I who made the stars of night, I will make their darkness bright. Who will bear My light to them? Whom shall I send? Here I am Lord, Is it I Lord? I have heard You calling in the night. I will go Lord, if You lead me. I will hold Your people in my heart. I, the Lord of wind and flame, I will tend the poor and lame. I will set a feast for them, My hand will save Finest bread I will provide, Till their hearts be satisfied. I will give My life to them, Whom shall I send? Here I am Lord, Is it I Lord? I have heard You calling in the night. I will go Lord, if You lead me. I will hold Your people in my heart.

The disciples were crouched in fear in the upper room...waiting for whatever would come next...fearful that they would soon be the ones to be killed for their relationship with Christ...and then...

A sealed tomb could not hold Jesus in...a locked door could not keep Jesus out...Suddenly everything changed...Jesus appeared in the locked room after His crucifixion and resurrection...He said to them, "Peace be with you." (John 20:19)  Jesus Christ had conquered death...He conquered their fear...and He gave them a job to do...and He gave us, His followers a job to do as well...

John 20:21

"So Jesus said to them again,

"Peace to you!

As the Father has sent Me,

I also send you."

But we are not expected to follow Jesus alone...

John 20:22

"And when He had said this, 

He breathed on them, and said to them,

"Receive the Holy Spirit."

Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit onto the disciples that day...equipping them for service and for all of the things that were yet to come...and Jesus Christ has also breathed His Holy Spirit upon us, filling us with His very Presence...giving us all of the gifts and tools that we need to go forward into the world in His Name...He goes with us...we are not alone.

So, what's next, Lord?  I've been at this place before...many times...and whenever I (we...hubby and I are a team, but You know this already, Lord) heard You calling "in the night", I/we responded, "Here I am, Lord."  And You always took me/(us) at my word, and there was always "a plan"... so, again, here we are, Lord...You know we are retired, right? I have a feeling that is something that is an advantage for You, Lord...not a disadvantage...so...what's next, Lord? 

"Here I am Lord, Is it I Lord? I have heard You calling in the night. I will go Lord, if You lead me. I will hold Your people in my heart."

Stay tuned for further developments...

God always has a plan...

Sermon notes from FUMC Interlachen, April 22, 2018, Pastor A.C. Myers

Update on It's Harvest Time...Reposted for RJD

Today is Random Journal Day, which means that many of my blogging friends are digging into old journals and posting their personal "blasts from the past" for you to enjoy.  This particular post I have already had on here before, but the content is drawn largely from my old journal writings from many years ago, so I believe it qualifies for "Random Journal Day".

I just noticed that the leaves are starting fall from my sycamore trees in the front of our house, so even though it isn't autumn yet technically, it has started.

This is a repost just for the "Fall Lovers" out there... like me...who are stuck in Florida where true autumn doesn't really exist except in our minds and hearts!!


Nothing like being buried in the Autumn leaves!
My three sons... (Scott, Benton, and Matthew)...many moons ago...How I wish I could go back there again...
 (Nova, Ohio, 1979...wow...where did the years go?)

My Youngest Son (Scott) now...planting fall mums for his "Mum" (me) on my birthday! (this picture was from 2011..another time, another house)

Proverbs 31:16: "She considers a field and buys it. From her profits she plants a vineyard."

I must say I've considered lots of fields and have often wished to buy them, but, alas, right now our field is of a different form. It can't be bought and sold. It's the field of the Lord, and it is "already white for harvest!" (John 4:35)

Quite a few years ago when we lived up north, our favorite thing to do on a fall Saturday morning was to get up early and get a cup of coffee and tea and a bite of breakfast at the local drive-thru, and take a nice slow ride out into the country. After a hectic week of planning sermons, visiting the sick, elderly, and newcomers, (my husband's job); preparing the bulletin, typing letters, and attending ladies' meetings, taking care of the family at home and the church family, etc....(my job), it was so refreshing to just get away from the phone, the traffic, and hustle bustle of our modern suburban living and get out into the country where people really know how to live! Our favorite route passed by many small farmsteads with fields of corn or hay or soybeans ready for the harvest. We usually wound up at one of the many local apple orchards for a cup of hot cider and fresh warm donuts and a brisk walk through the orchard. The apple farmers were just as busy as the grain farmers gathering in their crops before the winter. It's such a joyful time of year. People are excited about gathering pumpkins, squash, gourds, Indian corn, and other fall decorations to bring the beautiful fall colors into their homes. The big thing in that area was for kids to take a wagon ride out to the "pumpkin patch" and pick their very own pumpkins. I saw a lot of adults rather enjoyed it as well.  Here in Florida we don't see the real live pumpkin patch like you do up north, but we do have pumpkin patches where the pumpkins have been trucked in from other places so the kids can still have that fun experience.

Deep in my heart I longed to just linger on the farm and become a part of it. I guess because I was born on a farm I've never gotten it out of my system. The sounds, smells, and activities of farm life really make me hunger for that kind of life. But God has called me to a different kind of farm, and a different harvest field. The crop is far greater than corn or wheat or apples. It is the souls of men and women and children. Although I don't think that my particular spiritual gift is "soul-winning", there are many steps that must be taken before the harvest can be reaped. Someone must plow the field, others must plant the seed, still more are needed to water the seed and yet others must pull the weeds and watch for pests who come to destroy. All are an integral part of God's plan, and none are more important than the others.

Christ said in John 4:36-38 that "he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true: One sows and another reaps. I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors."

Maybe someday I'll be able to buy that field and plant a vineyard, and even though we are no longer in "the ministry" in the same way as we were in years before, I still remain in God's  harvest field and must do my part to prepare the way for His return. Perhaps someday you and I will rejoice together as sowers and reapers who have seen the fruit gathered in for eternal life! That will be a glorious day!

Matthew 9:37-38 "The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."

 

Isaiah 6:8 "Also I heard the voice of the Lord saying: 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?' Then I said, 'Here am I! Send me.'"

 

Are you willing to go out into God's harvest field today? He may be calling you!

This was on my Grandpa's farm back in the early 1940's. My Grandma Tedlie is on the far right. The other people are some of my cousins and my Aunt Belle. It was harvest time. Most of these people are already enjoying their eternal reward in heaven.

Now That's What I Call Autumn Leaves!

I hope you enjoyed these gleanings from the memories of my past. May your harvest days be full of joy and blessings and peace.

Now skip on over to my friends at http://beneaththesurface-dawn.blogspot.com/2013/09/random-journal-day-link-up-september.html and see what memories they have stirred up.

Flashback to "Those Seventy's" Days...Random Journal Day

(Linking up with my friends at Random Journal DayClick here to join the link up)

Note from the Present:   This past week I have been reminded about our early ministry days and our experience of being in a Christmas Parade with our youth group.  What got me thinking about this was the unusual phenomenon currently taking place in the city of Ocala, where I am presently employed.  The Ocala Annual Christmas Parade will happen tomorrow afternoon.  For the past week (or more) I have been noticing places all along the sides of the streets roped off and lawn chairs tied with ropes, staking out people's vantage points for watching the parade. This is an annual event...people, businesses, groups, anybody interested enough to participate, stake their claims for land all along the parade route way in advance.  Strangely enough, no one dares to move the chairs and ropes from those places.  It's the honor system.  I find it rather intimidating...how does a newcomer find a place to watch the parade pass by?  You have to wait for someone to die and leave their favorite spot to you in their will, I guess.  I've never seen this happen anywhere else...have you? Just wondering...Needless to say, I won't be watching the parade. I'm not high enough up in the city eschelon to rate a vantage point. Not yet...(ha)

So, here is a story from our past from when I wasn't just a spectator in a Christmas parade, but an actual participant, riding through the streets of Orlando, Florida, with thousands of people watching our float floating by!  Read on from my "journal writings" from the mid-1970's. To further set the scene, we had just arrived fresh from Bible College Grad School, where we had actually seriously considered going into foreign missions full time.  But God had other plans for our lives back at home.

December, 1975:

Isaiah 6:8  “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’  Then I said, ‘Here am I! Send me.’”

 

So John (my hubby) accepted the call to be the Youth Pastor at a church in Florida, and we happily moved back to our home territory!  It was an exciting time in our lives! After the days of testing and preparation, we were actually going to be entering the ministry!  Our charge was to take a small group of teens, approximately six to ten on the average attendance, and make them grow!  Grow, not only in number, but also most preferably to grow in spirit and the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ!  Not an easy task in the mid-seventies, at the close of the Viet Nam War. There was a lot of unrest, dissatisfaction, and turbulence in our country at that time.  But something interesting was stirring in our nation as well.  As we approached the Bi-Centennial in 1976, there was a new wave of patriotism and a spirit of revival in the hearts of many. 

One of our first assignments was to enter a float in the Orlando Christmas Parade, and the theme for the parade that year interestingly enough was “God Bless America!” A Bible verse that came to our minds was II Chronicles 7:14, which states: 

“If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

 

What better message than this to convey the idea of “God Bless America!”  Since this was a Christmas parade, we sought a way to combine the Christmas message with this message of hope and healing for our land.  So our youth came up with the idea of our float being a live nativity scene, with the banners on the side of the float reading “God Has Blessed America! He Sent His Son!”  Then on the front of the truck was a large wooden open Bible, with the II Chronicles 7:14 verse inscribed upon it. 

As we drove down through the streets of Orlando, we had the “Hallelujah Chorus” and other excerpts of “Handel’s Messiah” and “The King Is Coming”(By Bill Gaither, 1970) playing on a loud speaker. The young people were in their costumes of the Nativity of our Lord, with that powerful message for all to see.  I was riding in the cab of the truck with my husband, and I was watching the faces of the people along the road as they saw our float glide by.  Many people were cheering and clapping and praising God for the positive message it inspired.  I had this vision of being in a parade on the streets of heaven someday, with all the saints of the ages welcoming us into glory. It was such a beautiful dream, and perhaps a glimpse of what that day will truly be like.  I couldn’t help but allow the tears to roll down my cheeks as I thought about our country and the millions of people who still needed to know Jesus, and I knew then that we had made the right choice by serving the Lord in our homeland.  But we sure had our work cut out for us!

Back to the Present:  Sounds like a message that we still need today!  Nothing much has really changed in the past almost 40 years!  

So, do you have any special parade memories that you can share? Or perhaps a time when you participated in a live nativity scene or other special Christmas program? Now would be a good time to take advantage of the many Christmas musicals, plays, and yes, even parades that are available to help ring in the true Spirit of Christmas! 

Merry Christmas to you and yours.