A Shelter from the Storm

Another bitter cold night; 16 below, brrrr!  Winter can be so harsh here.  I find myself worrying about the children out early in the morning the catch the school bus.  Often the school issues a delay just to allow the temps to come up a bit before the kids have to leave their homes.  Our school district is about 27 square miles and it’s not unusual for children to spend an hour riding the bus to get to school.  Being so spread out, there’s no such thing as a ‘bus stop’.  Instead, a student has to wait by the roadside at the end of their driveway.  If they aren’t there when the school bus comes by, the driver just moves on with his route.  Obviously, these kids can’t stand outside freezing in a blizzard waiting for a bus!

Using that famous ‘Yankee Ingenuity’ parents have come up with a practical solution to shelter their children from the cold and blowing snow.  Little shelters made from recycled materials wait like phone booths at the end of long drive ways.

Each has a window to watch for the bus.  Some even have doors installed.  There are plain ugly shelters and others are quite decorative.  A few are cleverly repurposed as produce stands for the summer!  

Emotionally we face many storms throughout our lives.   Storms that turn our lives upside down!  Storms of broken hearts that need much more than a flimsy little booth of protection.  The loss of loved ones, financial disaster, broken homes, failing health, on and on goes the list.  This life is not perfect nor is it safe.  Where do we run for respite and shelter in times of such storms?

For in the day of trouble

he will keep me safe in his dwelling;

he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent

and set me high upon a rock.        Psalm 27:5

God has provided a shelter for us, too.  Not a little outhouse with borrowed windows, but an impregnable fortress against the storms of life.

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High

will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,

my God, in whom I trust.        Psalm 91:1-2

Love as always, Elaine

Fit for Life

I've got this thing about exercise. Aerobic exercise (like walking or jogging) is hard for me because of my leg problems, but I really enjoy working with hand weights. I can also spend hours outside gardening, pruning, digging and trimming. (Maybe that's because I lift weights?) And I dislike anything that prevents me from keeping up with my exercise schedule. Unfortunately, there are many such interruptions. For me it's the inconveniences of sickness, injury or surgery.

In the past year I've had two surgeries that interrupted my routine for at least a month. It's especially frustrating to me because such interruptions set me back in my progress towards heavier weights or more repetitions. At times like these I must fall back on the advice the Apostle Paul. Maybe his young, beloved traveling companion had some trouble with interruptions, too, because he wrote him this advice in 1 Timothy 4:7b-8;

...train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.

It's pretty exciting that godliness has value in every way, both now and in my future life beyond the grave. What kind of exercise can I do to train myself for this valuable commodity? In his letter to Titus verse 1, Paul is endorsed as...

“...a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God's elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness...”

So knowledge of God's Truth will lead me on to godliness. No weights, no setbacks (except of my own making) and no fear of injuring myself. After all, if a little of God's Truth is good for me, even more will be even better! That's the daily routine I must be sure to continue – and I can do it while I'm recuperating from whatever. Although my exercise is of some benefit to my physical well being, there's no doubt that my body continues to deteriorate as I age. Paul relates in Romans 7:24, that he is well aware these physical bodies are destined to die and decay;

“What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?”

To what was just a rhetorical question, Paul answers in triumph in the very next verse,

“Thanks be to God – through Jesus Christ our LORD!”

I suppose the best exercise I could do is lifting God's Word down from the shelf and digging right in!

Love as always, Elaine (lifting those heavy things!)

A-a-choo!

A-a-choo!

August 23, 2014

At home while I was growing up my folks never used foul language but they weren't without some colorful ephitaphs. When my mom was frustrated or exasperate, she'd spit out, “Oh, for corn's sake!” A funny expression by today's standards but one I recall every summer at this time.

We returned home from vacation at the end of July to find that the field corn, which surrounds us on three sides, had grown by two feet (at least!) and tasseled into bloom. Until living here, I didn't realize I was allergic to corn. But maybe it's just that there is so much of it blooming all at the same time? Whatever the reason, I suffer through allergic reaction in varying degrees each August. Like Mom used to say, “Oh, for corn's sake!”

Life outdoors in the country is filled with allergins. Winter is the only exception but, brrrrr, who wants to stay outside then? There are some allergies we can't avoid but just have to wade through the tissues and eye drops, hoping to find some antihistimines that curb our symptoms. Our spiritual lives can be like that, too. There are temptations and trials that cross our path every day. What causes a violent reaction from me may not do the same for you. You know, those triggers that frazzle and exasperate? Just as our outdoor allergies may vary, so do our reactions to life's foibles.

One way to combat allergies is to eliminate the irritant. Obviously, I can't stay someplace else while the corn wafts proud plumes of pollen (hey, three p's!) across the countryside. Your allergies may be just as impossible to avoid. So, spiritually speaking, how can we avoid those commonplace issues that cause us such turmoil? Jesus told a very interesting story about that in Matthew 12:43;

“When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it.”

Great! Now we've rid ourselves of that exasperating circumstance, habit or person, that caused us so much distress. But that's not the end of Jesus' story. Let's return to Farmer Jeff's corn field across the street. I've noticed that he plants corn for 2 years and then plants a summer of potatoes. Potatoes I can handle! I've noticed that farmers don't let their fields lie fallow for a season. Obviously, that would allow weeds to spread and proliferate. Let's read on in verses 44-45;

“Then it (the evil spirit) says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation.” (NIV)

Oops! Cleaning house wasn't such a good thing. But why? It's because the original host (you and I) left a vacancy that wasn't being inhabited. When we cast out what gives us such unpleasant reactions, we have to fill the time, space, and thoughts with something more wholesome. A blank space in our lives WILL be filled. We have opportunity to choose what we will fill that space with. We need to take to heart the warning from Jesus Christ. “the final condition of that man is worse than the first”!

Love as always, Elaine (Please pass the tissues!)

The Big Scary Thing

The Big Scary Thing

July 23, 2014

Summers in Georgia are oppressively hot, as you can imagine. Even the birds land panting in the afternoon heat. I hate to be closeted in the house all day so I brave the heat to sit slowly rocking on the porch, enjoying the occasional breeze. As I sit on the porch, a man passes by and greetes me in a generic way and I reply with, “A hot one, isn't it?” His reply is very interesting...

“Oh, I'm used to this – it ain't hurtin' nobody.”

Of couse he's right. The heat isn't really a burden, just uncomfortable.

I'm waiting out here to catch a mother wren bringing food to her newly hatched young. She built a nest in a most unlikely place – a cloth bag hanging under the mail box awaiting newspapers. The mailman delivers mail above her nest each day. Fortunately, there are no longer any newspaper subscriptions here. Our family comes and goes through the front door every day, sometimes with a great hub-bub. If there's a Big Scary Thing on the porch she hangs back, refusing to give away the treasure she's hidden in the yellow bag. She flutters worriedly from bush to vine, railing to pillar waiting for the danger to pass. She doesn't know that her young have already been discovered and we peek daily into the bag to watch the bare skinned chicks growing. Today, they opened their gaping mouths as I “tsk, tsked” at them before settling in to wait for Mom's delivery.

I have to sit very still in the far corner of the porch for her to feel the coast is clear. She plots a circuitous route onto the railing, hops to a potted plant, sidesteps to the chair leg; always keeping low and quick moving. It's almost comical, the time and effort she puts into her stealthy approach. It's all for nothing! We pose absolutely no threat to her little treasures. But to her, we are a Big Scary Thing.

Rich and I are soon returning home from vacation to face our own “Big Scary Thing”. We received a diagnosis that no one wants to hear – Cancer. Many others have faced this before and are still battling it. That provides some comfort, knowing that others are walking this hard road. But what if cancer is as we are to this little, busy wren?. Maybe I am seeing this as a Big Scary Thing when it is merely a bump in the road of life? Maybe I'm imagining a heavy burden where there is just discomfort? Jesus wants us to find the rest that is waiting with Him;

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden light.” Matthew 11:28-30

Love as always, Elaine

MY SHRINKING WORLD

March 14, 2014

Our latest 12 inch addition to our snow pack took me back several weeks to our biggest storm of the new year – join me in My Shrinking World...

Lake effect storms seal our house in a shrink wrap of snow. The wind has plastered the snow over all the back windows, making a cozy igloo of my kitchen. This tends to make one a bit claustrophobic. The bathroom windows have been shielded in curtains of icicles – who needs privacy glazing? I'm so thankful the front windows are mostly clear so I can actually see what kind of weather we're getting! You know that claustrophobic feeling you an get in elevators?

For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me. Psalm 40:12

Apparently David knew the press of worldly troubles and confusion! He was on the run from King Saul for much of his early life. For me, it feels like my world is shrinking in on itself, isolating me from news and neighbors. It's easy for me to get caught up in household chores, as if they were the most important things in my life. I could probably keep busy all winter, locked in a prison of ice, with all the projects I have going.

But I doubt that God has such busy work in mind for me. I have to tear myself away from this icy cave and get back to the comfort and encouragement of His Word.

Lord; may your love and faithfulness always protect me...Be pleased to save me, Lord;

come quickly, Lord, to help me. Psalm 40:11 + 13

Suddenly my world opens up and I can breathe again!

Love as always, Elaine

A Fresh Start

A Fresh Start

March 3, 2014

January's deep freeze left us peering through heavy icicles onto a scene buried in white. What a relief to have a late February thaw bringing a tease of spring to come. Icicles came crashing down, releasing think ice dams to bury in the two foot drifts under the eaves. Bare ground began to appear in our driveway that Rich worked so hard to keep open and I could smell the scent of damp earth. Then several days of lake effect covered all in a 2 foot blanket of pristine white. It covered all the dirt and gravel thrown aside by the snow plows and once again the rusty leftover farm equipment and assorted trash of daily life was out of sight. The winds lift the snow into whipped cream drifts of dazzling white. We awaken each day to a clean tablecloth that God refreshed during the sub-zero nights.

In spite of the beauty winter is such a hardship to our many widows left alone to care for their property. Equipment breaks down, roofs start to leak, water pipes freeze and supplies run low. Driving conditions are so bad that help can be a long time coming. It's easy to get discouraged awaiting the spring that seems too long in coming. I am comforted each morning by His continued care, in spite of all the storms of life.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

As February wanes, you may, like many of us, have given up on your New Year's resolutions by now. But God's resolve never wavers or weakens. His plan is to refresh us each day.

“Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him." The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him" Lamentations 3:22-25.

Love as always, Elaine

Blurred Vision

Recent facial surgery has me fumbling about without any eyeglasses.  My trifocals (which I wear constantly) are too big and heavy to rest on the pressure dressing.  My “computer” glasses aren’t much better even though they correct only two fields of vision.  I’m thankful to have a lightweight pair for distance and TV viewing.  At least I can wear those!  But that means I can’t read the calendar, recipes or books.  I can’t do any crafts or use my sewing machine.  Even Bible study is out of the question since I use a small print, four translation parallel Bible.  What a dilemma!

That had me searching the scriptures (on the computer only) for NT references to blindness.  What a wealth of teachings I happened upon!  The Gospels alone contain 46 references using the word blind!  The most endearing incidents are of Jesus giving sight to the blind, like the following which appears in all three Synoptic Gospels;

Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see.  All the people were astonished and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"    Matthew 12:22; Mark 3:23-27 and Luke 11:17-22

Sadly enough, the Pharisees were unconvinced by this display of Heavenly power and accused Jesus of using the power of demons;

…But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, "It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons."    Matthew 12:24

It’s easy enough for me to condemn these Pharisees as hard-hearted or perhaps foolish not to recognize the power of God.  If I’m honest, however, there are some ways in which I become blind to God’s Truth.  What about the “air pollution” and “smog” that hovers around me when I’m too distracted by worldly things to concentrate on the Heavenly ones?

Or, when I’m constantly in motion doing, doing, and doing – am I too busy to hear that “still, small Voice”?  I’m reminded that Jesus used the metaphor of blindness to condemn the unbelief of the Jewish religious leaders. 

“Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”  Matthew 15:14

At other times I’ve allowed petty, nagging worries to block my view of the Divine.  I need to get around all the underbrush for a clear and inspiring vista, just like Mt. Rainier appearing around the next bend!

Love as always,  Elaine (changing lenses again!)

Perpetual Spring

As the daffodils fade, the tulips burst open with their vibrant colors.  By the time they are pale and tattered by April winds, irises spread their orchid throats to the bees.  Lilies rise to spread their pollen over daisies and lupines.  They drop their petals as black-eyed Susans follow the sun at its zenith.  Step by step my gardens tell their tale of summer – and of our lives.

As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him; for He knows how we are formed, He remembers that we are dust.  As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.  Psalm 103:13-16

After visiting with our children and grandchildren, I realize that families follow that same procession of life.  As our generation fades and loses energy, the next generation comes to full bloom lifting up the next beautiful “bloomers” to replace them in due time.

What a joy it is to see our not-so-little boys with their own little ones.  I rejoice knowing our family memories will live beyond us through generation after generation.  Some will be born with a love of gardening.  Others will bake or cook with a passion.  There will be readers and writers and painters.  My straight hair will plague some future great, great granddaughter who needs braces on her teeth!

I was very close to my Grandma and Pap-pap, so I treasure all my memories of them.  Those memories seem to grow clearer to me the older I get.  Because of God’s blessing in my life, I’m able to build memories for grandchildren to treasure long after I am gone.  Of course, I will be gone someday as Moses wrote in the one Psalm attributed to him:

You sweep men away in the sleep of death; they are like the new grass of the morning— though in the morning it springs up new, by evening it is dry and withered.  Psalm 90:5-6

As I watch the seasons change my garden, the urgency of my limited life span is brought home.  May we all echo the Psalmist’s prayer:

Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.  Psalm 90:12

Love as always,  Elaine (deadheading in the garden)

Are You Really Hungry?

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  Matthew 5:6

 

In a trip to an Ohio camp meeting, Rich and I had opportunity to stop by one of our favorite state parks at Pymatuning, PA.  This area was the scene of many family camping trips and is filled with fond memories.  We visited the Espyville spillway and bought stale bread to feed to the fish.  If you visit the park, don’t miss this local wonder.

The spillway teems with fish waiting for tourists to throw bread down to them.  Ducks and seagulls float as close as they dare, hoping for handouts.  When bread hits the water, a feeding frenzy breaks out.  Ducks even dance precariously on the backs of the huge carp in order to snatch any stray crumbs.  Imagine being so hungry that you would trample on others to get just a bite of bread!

Wouldn’t it be great if we were that hungry for the Word of God?  To keep watch, eagerly awaiting Bible study and prayer time?  In Psalm 63:1, David writes of his longing for God while running from Saul in the wilderness:

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.  Psalm 63:1

Now that’s a real hunger!  In his time of exile, David longed to be among the worshippers before the tabernacle in Jerusalem.  How blessed we are to live under the new covenant.  We have the completed Word of God right in our hands!  There are so many in the world still yearning for the Bread and Water that satisfies.  I’ve seen photos of crowds of people reaching up to a missionary handing out Bibles from the back of a truck.  Thanks be to God that the salvation He offers cuts across all cultural and language barriers:

Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.”  John 6:35

Although you may not know it, there are many around you who are thirsting for that which eternally satisfies.  May you slake your thirst in God’s Word daily in order to share it with others.

Love as always,  Elaine (feasting on the Word)

Parsonage Pets

I wrote this two cats ago before our new siding was installed, which did diminish the frequency of these unwanted visits.  These applications to God’s Word are still true, though…

  Country living has some wonderful benefits that are beyond compare.   The furry ones aren't exactly my favorites!  Chester has caught his share of moles when they wander into the house as the weather turns colder.  We've gone through a few rodent purges in the shed, as mice rained down from the rafters -- literally.

    Our biggest problem is a result of a building flaw.  I suspect there should have been a foot or two of brick built up from the slab before the wood siding starts.  Since the siding goes all the way to the ground level, crevices and entry holes are easy to excavate by all manner of critters.  Moisture from melting snow has left the bottom edges rotting and curling up from the "foundation", leaving ready made gateways into the world of humans.

  I was eating breakfast one morning and heard a scrabbling in the bathroom.  I turned to see a fat chipmunk foraging around the washer and dryer!  Later that day, when the chipmunk appeared in the kitchen, Rich fetched Chester from our bedroom to do his feline duty.  After that, there was no rest for anyone until the rodent had been evicted!  Chester screeched around corners and up and down our few steps.  He caught his "mousie" several times and had the poor critter terribly upset.  Finally, the chipmunk found a way out and disappeared for good.  We haven't seen it feeding out under the bird feeder since.  Perhaps it expired of its wounds or simply moved on to a more pastoral neighborhood!

  Living on a slab encourages hoards of insect refugees.  I regularly evict crickets so they won't keep us awake at night.  I never kill them (for one thing, they'd make an enormous spot!) because they are useful insects, just not in the house.  Also, Chester loves to chase them and eat the legs off them!  Ugh!!  How repulsive!  Such noisy pursuits in the night are not appreciated by the humans.

  Last night was our most disturbing incident by far.  Rich was sitting with Chester in the living room and saw something moving in the hallway.  Did I say "slithering"?  He got up to turn on a light and found that it was a snake!!  Unfortunately, Chester saw it, too, and R. had a terrible time keeping him away from it until he could identify it.  So he thumped on it with a broom for a while and then we threw it outside.  It was only a small garter snake after all - about 12 inches long and no bigger around than a pencil, but disturbing, none the less.  R. hates the thought of walking around the house barefoot with snakes about and I get the willies to think it was in the hallway, on its way to our bedroom! 

  Now I don't tell you these stories to discourage you from coming to visit us.  It's not as if they are stampeding up and down the hall!  But it did bring to mind our need for continual diligence as per Peter’s warning in 1 Peter 5:8;

Be self-controlled and alert.  Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

He's always looking for those little entry holes -- the rotten places in our defenses that can be easily breached. 

  Sometimes it's the chipmunks of the world that invade.  Leisure and self-indulgence look so appealing and harmless when they are outside our lives.  But once inside, they gnaw away at the beautiful fruit the Holy Spirit has been growing in our hearts and leave droppings of selfishness in its place –

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.  Galatians 5:22-23

  Crickets are like those annoying habits we chase after, trying to get them under control and silence their persistent nagging!  There will be no peace or rest until we've evicted them!  God makes the job so much easier by giving us the Helper, the Comforter, the Holy Spirit.  He's the One Who actually helps us seal up the foundation around our "house".

Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.   2 Corinthians 1:21-22

  Worst of all is the serpent that slithers into our lives!  What a loathsome and frightening tenant!  Envy and hatred slip in when we're not paying attention and end up in our very "bedroom" before we know it!  Ugh!  We hate it once we recognize it for the snake that it is but often, by that time, much damage has been done and others have been bitten.  We ourselves are poisoned by its influence on us as we walk unsuspecting and barefoot.  We must always keep our feet shod with "the readiness that comes from the Gospel of peace", Eph. 6:15.  As Peter admonished us, we must be ever on guard.

  Keep the Light of God's Word ever shining in your hearts so you won't be surprised by things that slither, gnaw or chirp in the night!

Love as always,  Elaine (was that a cricket I heard?)

Our Family Chronicles

With a brand new family historical journal in hand, I was able to interview my Mom’s generation concerning their elders before they passed on.  And once they did pass, all their remaining photos came to me!  I sifted through boxes and albums searching for old photos that hinted at our storied past.  It’s such a responsibility being one of the oldest remaining in a family!

Sorting through a wide assortment of black and white photos gave me the inspiration for an ambitious wall display.  Unfortunately, I’ve been unable (without spending money on a search) to go back farther than three generations.  Even so, I feel such a sense of accomplishment every time I see this wall of family photos.  Now that we have grandchildren I feel the urgency of “capturing” these lives gone by.  Some advise writing our stories down.  Others suggest an oral history.  When I consider that this one photographic project took me three years to complete, I’m overwhelmed!

One of the things that makes the Bible so precious to me is the long and rich history contained there in.  This continuing history is one of the compelling internal evidences of the infallibility of the Bible.  What a treat to read about life in very ancient Egypt through the life of Joseph!  Who can resist the excitement of the battle between God and the Egyptian magicians as the plagues ravaged Pharoah’s kingdom?  Then there’s the Hebrew mass exodus!  On and on, the history of man winds through the ages leading up to the coming of Messiah.  Our religious history goes back thousands of years!

As Christians, we are all part of a vast family reaching back to the days of Abraham as in Galatians 3:26-29:

You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.  If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

How thrilling that Jesus, the Son of God, is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters!  A family tree doesn’t get any better than this:

Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers.  He says, "I will declare your name to my brothers; in the presence of the congregation I will sing your praises."  And again, "I will put my trust in him." And again he says, "Here am I, and the children God has given me."   Hebrews 2:11-13

We are the children God has given to our Messiah, Jesus Christ!

Love as always,  Elaine (me in my Pap-Pap's hat)

Precious Keepsakes

In recent travels we visited with friends who are collectors.  Their house is stuffed with sets of glassware, dishes, dolls, books, etc.  We stayed in the “red room”.  You guessed it – everything in the crowded room was red, right down to the vanity seat.  Even the bathroom featured a special collection of red Christmas items!  To me it was sensory overload.  I could have spent days looking at everything in their home.  But that got me to thinking about my own personal collecting…

Our early spring weather brought our daffodils out too soon.  Yes, they brought cheer following a grey and dismal winter but they were in danger of freezing a few nights ago.  A predicted dip into the teens overnight would surely ruin them.  R and I took a flashlight out so I could snip off the yellow blooms and bring them indoors to enjoy.  Who could deny that I’m a plant collector?  I’ve so many houseplants that I post little notes advising which ones need fertilized when.  Before house guests arrive I have to move plants out of their temporary sleeping quarters! 

 

R and I love books.  When we travel we take opportunities to stop at any used bookstores we pass along the way.  I feel sorry for our children who will have to sort through them all when we are gone.  I won’t even mention the photographs stuffed in boxes and albums!

We are a nation of collectors.  We Americans are fascinated by our own history.  Museums and historical monuments continually host a stream of interested tourists.  These same tourists take home remembrances of their vacation, putting them out where they can be seen.  Their visitors can enjoy these souvenirs and ask about their recent trip.

I have an idea that God isn’t much impressed with all of our collecting.  What kind of keepsakes would God like us to collect?  Every Sunday we have opportunity to gather around a table set with keepsakes of Jesus.  His Body and Blood are represented there in the bread and the fruit of the vine.  Jesus even said it was to remember Him in Luke 22:19:

And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."

How can we forget this most important collector’s item?  These are the emblems of our LORD and Savior.  Paul knew how much this meant to Jesus when he wrote to the Corinthians at 11:24-26: 

…and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me."  In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me."  For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.

Let’s gather around this Holy Collection every Sunday to honor and proclaim Christ as He wanted us to do!

Love as always,  Elaine (dressing in my Sunday best)