Wake Up!

Visiting with our daughter, Amy, on the phone today, I told  her about going to a get-together for ladies from church the other evening. "Howard was supposed to pick me up at 8:00 o'clock, " I said, "I kept looking for him, as most of the people were going home, so I called him. He sounded a bit groggy, so it was obvious he had fallen asleep!"

"I told Julie (my other daughter) about this when I  phoned her earlier," I said to Amy. "Then she had to tell what happened to her!"

 It seems Julie was visiting at a daughter's house a few days ago, and Steve (her husband)  was to come for her at a certain time. Time went by as she waited expectantly as the day wore on. Finally her son-in-law got home from work, and still no husband to take her home.  Turns out he fell asleep!

Then Amy laughed and said, "Corrin (her daughter) and David (Corrin's intended) came down from college yesterday, and David was to ask her daddy if he could marry Corrin." Amy told me the women of the house left to go shopping, leaving the guys at home.

"When we got back, Corrin asked David if he got to ask the question," Amy went on.

 "David answered, 'No, your dad dozed off and slept the whole time you were gone, and I didn't get to ask him!'" 

Needless to say, there were three disgruntled females in the family lately, thanks to these heavy-eyed, slumberous men!

Several incidents of sleeping are referred to in the Bible: Jesus sleeping during a storm, the disciples falling asleep in the garden, a little boy going to sleep and falling out a window during a long sermon, and the ten sleeping virgins, to name a few.

Natural sleep is  necessary, but  being spiritually awake is even more so. Paul writes of the importance of this: "Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light," Ephesians 5:14.

Banner Year

Sitting on the front porch with Howard this morning reading our Bibles, I raised my eyes to see an American flag waving across the prairie from a house that wasn't visible over the hill. It cheered my heart to see this symbol of liberty for "The land of the free and the home of the brave."
Sadly, many people today don't respect our flag.

In the Bible, a flag is called a banner. "He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love," Solomon 2:4. Sometimes it is called a standard, a symbol of strength and protection. A familiar example of that is Isaiah 59:19, "So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him."

When my husband was in the Army, their battalion leader carried a banner with their company name on it when they paraded or marched. It identified them and was an emblem of pride to their group. Howard was regularly chosen to carry our country's flag for parades. He recalls the command, "Eyes, right!" when the flag was lowered sharply to a 90 degree angle to hang smartly in front of the General.

I have read the story of Francis Scott Key, who wrote the lines to what would later be known as "The Star-Spangled Banner". A lawyer and a poet, he found himself on a ship which gave him the view of the battle on shore. As he watched the fire-storm and the bursting bombs lighting up the night sky, he was able to see Old Glory still flying. He jotted down verses that would become the beloved anthem.

Although our country was founded as a Christian nation, there are many non-believers and scoffers today. We must remember that Christ is our standard bearer. I think of the words of a song we used to sing that goes, "Love is a flag flown high o'er the castle of my heart, for the King is in residence there." It used to be the custom that when the king or ruler was at home, their flag would be flown above the castle. May the words be true for all!

Barnyard Observations

Howard invited a friend out to see one of our new baby goats the other day. Their common interest is goats, one in which this guy is very knowledgeable. He gave my husband several helpful tips about them, and when he saw one of the goats licking Howard's arm, he said, "That means they need salt."

Well, we knew that cows liked to lick salt, but we hadn't thought about it for goats. The next day found us in the farm supply store looking for blocks of salt. We were also advised to get mineral salt too. Who knew?

In the store, we were directed where to find them, and we were surprised that they weighed 50 pounds apiece! Since Howard's heart surgery, we try to be a little more careful with lifting, so a strong, young employee loaded them, and we got help unloading them at home.

Sure enough, the goats loved them, and it was reassuring to know they were getting the minerals they needed as well.

I was reminded of a verse in the Bible in which Jesus says, "Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt has lost his savour, werewith shall it be salted? It is henceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under the foot of men," Matthew 5:13.

We know that salt is essential to our bodies: it maintains fluid levels, affects our vital organs and prevents low blood pressure, among other benefits. I read that animals will eat dirt, chew on rocks or drink urine if they are deprived of salt.

By maintaining our Christian "saltiness," we may affect the lost who eat the dirty filthiness of the world, futilely feeding on "rocks," or drinking alcohol and using drugs. But if we have lost our savour, our effectiveness, Jesus said that then we are useless and discarded, trodden down by men. It reminded me of the salt that is put on roads during bad weather. Soon it is slush and mud.

"Please pass the salt," is a request at many tables. It adds flavor to the food. May we sprinkle savour from the way we live our lives for Him!

Lost!

We were so excited about the baby goat! It was a few days old by now and was venturing out of hiding. I called Howard to the window at breakfast to see it frolicking in the pasture by its mother. We watched laughing and marveling at the little creature's cute antics, until finally I left the window to begin the day.

Shortly, Howard called with alarm in his voice. "The little goat is gone!" he announced ominously.

"But you were watching it!" I exclaimed, although by this time he was at the sink washing the breakfast dishes.

"I just left for a minute, and when I looked again, there was no sign of her!" he said grimly. That was strange, for Mama goat was grazing unconcernedly nearby.

"We have to go look for her!" I decided. We got in the car, drove through the pasture gate and looked in sheds and out-buildings. She was nowhere to be found! We even looked down by the pond, to no avail.

All day we worried in frustration at the little goat's disappearance. Since there was a stand of thick, tall grass directly behind their grazing area, we concluded that a wild animal or a soaring eagle must have grabbed her. We went about our day with heavy hearts.

Later that day as the sun was about to set, we heard a commotion outside. Our son Greg was yelling something, and we heard bleating from the goat's mother as she dashed around frantically in the pasture.

"I heard the little goat!" Greg shouted, heading for that tall grass in the pasture. We rushed out just in time to see our hero son, striding along with open shirt and the young goat in his arms! He looked like Hercules just then!

He told us he heard bleating under a pile of boards from a dismantled barn in the over-growth. He reached in and pulled the baby out! Evidently she had fallen through and had been there all day! What a happy reunion for mama and baby!

I couldn't help but think of the story in the Bible that Jesus told of the lost sheep. The shepherd would not give up until he found him, as the parable goes.(Matthew 18:12-13, Luke 15:4-6). The song had been going through my head all day, and I found myself singing it as I prayed and thought about the missing goat.

May we be just as diligent for a lost soul! Jesus said in Luke 18:14, "Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish."

When You Least Expect It...

"Have you ever had a blessing from an unexpected source?" I was teaching a Sunday School class recently, and this question was posed by the lesson. Immediately my husband's hand went up.

"I have!" he exclaimed. "I was making a purchase at a store, and they were having trouble with their card machine. Over and over, I inserted my card, finally giving up, as the line behind me grew longer."

"I don't have any cash," I said, ready to put back the merchandise I really needed. "Just then the man behind me thrust bills into my hand to cover the tab!"

Actually, I had gone into the store first and experienced the malfunction, returning to the car with nothing but an explanation and sending Howard into the store. "Did the machine work?" I asked, and he told me the story!

Other people in the class told of their unexpected blessings, and I reminded Howard, "What about the cane?"

"Oh yes," he said. "We were on a trip to Texas, and I had forgotten my cane. Going into a Cracker Barrel, I asked a friendly hostess if they sold canes. She shook her head and said they didn't carry them. Then after lunch, she brought me a nice cane!"

"Oh, you found one!" I exclaimed, "How much is it?"

"It's yours!" she replied. Maybe a traveler had left it there, but it was a blessing that I have enjoyed ever since!"

The original question was related to the blessing the Jews received following their Babylonian captivity from those such as King Cyrus, Zerubbabel and others who helped them return to the land of Israel.

Watch for your unexpected blessings!

"Have you ever had a blessing from an unexpected source?" was the question to be posed to the Sunday School class I was teaching recently. The lesson referred to the unlikely help of those who contributed to the Jews' return to the Promised Land.

Immediately my husband's hand went up. "Yesterday I was buying a small item from a neighboring store, but they were having trouble with credit card machine. After several tries, I s