A Parent's Precious Prayers

This morning I sat down at the table and  opened the Devotional  called Grace For The Moment by Max Lucado and read the August 10th devotional.  ( I am about a month behind.)

A Parent's Precious Prayers

All your children will be taught by the Lord, and they will have much peace.  Isaiah 54:13

Never underestimate the ponderings of a Christian parent.  Never underestimate the power that comes when a parent pleads with God on behalf of a child.  Who knows how many prayers are being answered right now because of the faithful ponderings of a parent ten or twenty years ago?  God listens to thoughtful parents.

Praying for our children is a noble task.  If what we are doing, in this fast-paced society, is taking us away from prayer time for our children, we're doing too much.  There is nothing more special, more precious than time that a parent spends struggling and pondering with God on behalf of a child.
                                                                                        Walking with the Savior.

I am thankful that I had a mom and dad that prayed for me and each of their children and grandchildren.  I remember Mom kneeling by a chair at the kitchen table and praying for me.  She didn't know that I had seen her as I was supposed to be on my way to the bus stop.  That picture of her will always stay in my mind.  I don't all that she and God talked about when she prayed, but I wonder if the decisions I made were because of those prayers.  I remember times when I had two choices--the right choice or the wrong choice and God led me down right path. 

Thank you, Mom and Dad, for praying for me!

August 11th

Six years ago, my mother went to be with her Lord and Savior.  The smile on her face as she passed into eternity tells me that she was excited to go.

Almost a month ago we had a wonderful reunion here on the ranch.  All my siblings, their spouses, Mom's cousin and his wife and friends of the family since we were kids all came for fun and fellowship.  The weather was great and there weren't any mosquitoes.  We had a great time!

Thinking of that reunion made me think of the reunion that I will have when I reach Heaven.  Someday I will see my mom, dad, mother-in-law and Chip's nephew Wade again.  There will be many other relatives and friends there to greet me.  This past week I was listening to a tape of Chip's dad, Bobby Dye, singing.  It brought tears to my eyes as he sang "When Jesus Beckons Me Home."

When Jesus Beckons Me Home Lyrics   

The Stanley Brothers

I know that Jesus will never forsake
His love will find a way
He'll bridge the stream if his hand I will take
When he calls what can I say

 Day follows night night follows day
 Farther and farther I roam  
What will my answer be what can I say  
When Jesus beckons me home.

Sometimes the clouds seem to cover his face
Sometimes the skies are so gray
Still by the stars and his wonderful grace
He'll roll the storm clouds away

Day follows night night follows day
Farther and farther I roam
What will my answer be what can I say
When Jesus beckons me home.

Bobby Dye passed into eternity on November 1, 1986 due to an automobile accident. That very day, he had told his cousin that he knew what his answer would be when Jesus beckoned him home. 
For years, Bobby had rebelled against his parents and against church (God).  About a year before his accident, he had accepted Christ as his Savior.  Someday I want to hear his testimony of his changed heart and life.

That song made me think of the song that we sang at my mom's funeral.
Will the Circle be Unbroken
Habershon & Gabriel

There are loved ones in glory
Whose dear forms you often miss
When you close your earthly story
Will you join them in their bliss

(chorus) Will the circle be unbroken
By and by, by and by
In a better home awaiting
In the sky, in the sky

In the joyous days of childhood
Oft they told of wondrous love
Pointed to the dying Savior
Now they dwell with Him above

Will the circle be unbroken
By and by, by and by
In a better home awaiting
In the sky, in the sky

You remember songs of heaven
Which you sang with childish voice
Do you love the hymns they taught you
Or are the songs of earth your choice

Will the circle be unbroken
By and by, by and by
In a better home awaiting
In the sky, in the sky

You can picture happy gatherings
Round the fireside long ago
And you think of tearful partings
When they left you here below

Will the circle be unbroken
By and by, by and by
In a better home awaiting
In the sky, in the sky

One by one their seats were emptied
One by one they went away
Here the circle has been broken
Will it be complete one day

Will the circle be unbroken
By and by, by and by
In a better home awaiting
In the sky, in the sky

John 3:3

 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”  (NKJV)

What will my answer be what can I say
When Jesus beckons me home?

Will the Circle Be Unbroken? 










 

What is Love?

As Chip and I celebrate our 13th wedding anniversary, my thoughts turn toward the word love.

What is love?

There are 3 words for love in the Greek language.  First, there is eros love.  This love can be emotional and is the sex type love.  Second, there is"Philo" love.  This is the "brotherly love" that is shown in the book of Revelation.   It is a love of "if you love me; I'll love you.  Third, is Agape love.   It is a love that one gives without expecting anything in return. Christ had this type of love.  (There are many blogs that explain each of these in depth.)

Before Chip and I were married a neighbor told us that one does not fall in love, one grows in love.  Since I am still growing in love each day and therefore not an authority on the subject, I will explain love according to the Bible.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,  it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.^{s  I Corinthians 13:4-7  NIV}


And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is Love!  (verse 13)

Oh Me of Little Faith

This morning as I headed to town with the main idea of selling my books, my thoughts drifted to the next book that I plan on writing.  The one called Life on the Ranch: Life Lessons I Learned from Hunting.  I was in need of a rattlesnake picture and wasn't sure where I would get it. They aren't something that I go looking for.  I thought of several people who might be able to get a good picture for me when all of a sudden there was my prize object on the road.  I made a U-turn on Hwy 323 and went back to the snake.  I got out of the car with my camera and got as close to it as I dared and took some pictures.  Then I realized that zoom on cameras were made for a reason---just for rattlesnake pictures. :)

I stopped at the first store that was selling my books and walked away totally depressed.  The owner's records didn't match mine---or even hers as I had all of her receipts for the books.  She paid me and decided that she didn't want to sell them any more.  I walked out of there thinking that I wanted to see "Janet".  The likelihood of seeing her was slim as I have run into her once or twice in the past 15 years.  I went to Wal-Mart where I had run into her last fall.  I was feeling depressed so went out to eat before heading back to Belle Fourche.  I was trying not to do any impulsive buying due to my mental attitude so I went to Savers Mart- a store where I can shop all I want and get great deals.  Guess who I ran into in Savers Mart?  Yep, "Janet"!  We talked and she explained to me that it wasn't my fault.  She made me feel better so I went on to the next store.

I stopped at Love That Shoppe which is basically antiques.  She gave me a great lead to a new restaurant in town that was opening a gift shop.  So in August I will be able to put my books in there.  Then I headed on to Aladdin where they too will take my books after the motorcycle rally.  To finish my circle, I headed to Hulett where four books had sold.

So after a hot, but successful day, I ask myself Where is your faith?  God worked out so many details for me today, why do I not trust Him more?

More Lessons Learned

Some one told me that I will always be learning lessons from the ranch. I would like to share two that I have learned in the last three weeks since I have returned home from school and one that has been confirmed.


First, Never stand down wind from three heifers that are peeing!! I know, that should have been common sense, but I was not right behind them.

Second, I have learned the importance of water. Water is a life saver. I did not realize how really dry we are in Montana and surrounding states. I decided to water the trees while we still have water in the reservoirs. I think that some of those trees actually said "Thank you" when they got a three minute dose of water. One of them open its leaves and drank in the moisture. The surrounding grass actually turned green before my eyes. I stand in awe of the God who can do anything and everything.

Third, I know that God is in control of everything. He is in control of our country, our life and our weather. Some times things get out of control when He allows people to do what they think is best. When our calf "Cassie" was born, I thanked God for the extra blessing. Cassie was born to a heifer that should not have been bred until this year. A day later Cassie stepped in a hole and broke her leg. The bone broke the skin causing the vet to give us no hope for her survival. He told Chip to give her a shot of penicillin until she was dead. It has been 3 1/2 weeks and Cassie is no longer possible to catch without a rope and Chip won't do that to her. We will take the cast off in a couple of weeks and see how the leg is doing. God was in control and showed me that he can make things happen that no one believes can happen.

Chip went over to Carl's to put up a little hay. The key word is little. It took him an hour and a half to make one bale of hay. It wasn't a full bale and it looked like silage in bale form. We are done haying for the year with less than ten bales.

Time to work on caulking the house before it gets much warmer. We do have a breeze today, which is nice.

Emotions

As I sit here on the last few hours of school, my emotions are on a roller coaster ride.  I am very excited to be going home to Chip, Jake and the ranch, but I am very sad to have to say good-bye to some very special friends, co-workers and students.

I looked to see what the Bible says about emotions.  Proverbs 15:18 says that "A hot-tempered man (woman) stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention."  Well, since I am not angry that does not fit this situation, but I am thankful that I was honored to work with a group of professionals that were not hot-tempered and therefore we got along very well.

The next verse that came up was Romans 8:28: "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."

Those who have read my book Life on the Ranch, know that my/our desire is for the ranch to be a blessing to many.  Many quotes have been sent to me this month on faith and taking that first step.  I am trying to take it in/with faith.

Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with your whole heart and lean not unto your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths."

I have claimed that verse for years so I know that He has been there for me in the past and will continue with me through the future.

Depression

My thoughts turn toward "Depression" today for several reasons.

In the past month there have been far too many suicides around me.  The most recent was that of a college classmate.  He was a charming young man in college and had become a pastor in Pennslyvania.  He had come down with shingles and put on medication.  The medication caused the depression/psychotic disorder.  Although the medication was changed, he couldn't snap out of it.  Someone needed to take his condition more seriously.  His funeral is this week.

In October, I became very depressed/anxious and went to the doctor for medication.  The medication sent me in a nose dive down to the bottom of the pit.  By Sunday, I could barely get out of bed, let alone walk to the kitchen counter.  I wasn't suicidal, but I didn't really care if I lived or not.  It wasn't until my older brother told me that "It is time someone takes you seriously" that I realized that someone was going to take me seriously.  New medication has helped and a doctor who is standing behind me all the way.

We live in a world where there isn't a lot of hope.  We are told that by 2033 that our social security will be gone.  Our national debt has increased to a sum that most of us can't even understand. We live in a world where depression isn't truly understood until it has been experienced personally. 

I am thankful for a family that stood/stands behind me, for a principal who was/is so very understanding, a neighbor who is only a few steps a way and will let me "cry on her shoulder", a teacher/friend that teaches next door and for a fellow teacher who cared enough to walk all the way across the building to see if I was doing O.K.  I am thankful for the notes and letters that were so encouraging and for a church family and friends that have prayed for me faitfully.  I never realized that some of my friends/relatives had gone through anxiety as they had.

Please take depression seriously.  Get help for yourself and be there when you know your friends and neighbors are depressed. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Most people are so busy with their own lives they don't notice what is going on in someone elses' life.   We may never understand what one person is going through, but we can be patient with that person and listen.

You may save a life.