Traveling across the sky

Time is fleeting. It passes by so quickly.

Into deep summer, the year is half over, and only five-and-half months to be lived. Never knew that life was like a 100 metre dash.

When still a kid, Christmas, birthday and the winter holidays were the only time worth waiting for. Life then was like a marathon. Christmas never came. Birthdays were too slow to come. And the holidays were too few and far in between. Oh, the agony of that excited wait… If life can be lived as a kid forever, how much simpler, peaceful and friendly the world would be!

When you grow up, time usually catches you unaware. It was dry last week. You get older by a week, and it is raining cats and dogs. Not a happy situation for a person who has works outside to earn money. I was tempted to grumble until I read this:

          Rain clouds filled with lightning
          appear at God’s command,
          traveling across the sky
          to release their cargo -
          sometimes as punishment for sin,
          sometimes as kindness.
          ———————————–

          Job 37:11-13
          Contemporary English Version

Do I still complain about the weather? God knows best what He’s doing!

Under His wings

An article in National Geographic several years ago provided an interesting picture of God’s wings. After a forest fire in Yellowstone National Park, forest rangers began their trek up a mountain to assess the inferno’s damage.

One ranger found a bird literally petrified in ashes, perched statuesquely on the ground at the base of a tree. Somewhat sickened by the eerie sight, he knocked the bird over with a stick. When he gently struck it, three tiny chicks scurried from under their dead mother’s wings.

The loving mother, keenly aware of impending disaster, had carried her offspring to the base of the tree and had gathered them under her wings, instinctively knowing that the toxic smoke would rise. She could have flown to safety but had refused to abandon her babies. When the blaze arrived and the heat scorched her small body, the mother had remained steadfast. Because she had been willing to die, those under the cover of her wings would live.

“He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge …” – Psalm 91:4

Right now…

Right now -
-somebody is very proud of you.
-somebody is thinking of you.
-somebody is caring about you.
-somebody misses you.
-somebody wants to talk to you.
-somebody wants to be with you.
-somebody hopes you aren’t in trouble.
-somebody is thankful for the support you have provided.
-somebody wants to hold your hand.
-somebody hopes everything turns out all right.
-somebody wants you to be happy.
-somebody wants you to find him/her.
-somebody is celebrating your successes.
-somebody wants to give you a gift.
-somebody thinks that you are a gift.
-somebody hopes you’re not too cold, or too hot
-somebody wants to hug you.
-somebody loves you.
-somebody admires your strength.
-somebody is thinking of you and smiling.
-somebody wants to be your shoulder to cry on.
-somebody wants to go out with you and have a lot of fun.
-somebody thinks the world of you.
-somebody wants to protect you.
-somebody would do anything for you.
-somebody wants to be forgiven.
-somebody is grateful for your forgiveness.
-somebody wants to laugh with you.
-somebody remembers you and wishes that you were there.
-somebody is praising God for you.
-somebody needs to know that your love is unconditional.
-somebody values your advice.
-somebody wants to tell you how much they care.
-somebody wants to share their dreams with you.
-somebody wants to hold you in their arms.
-somebody wants you to hold them in your arms.
-somebody treasures your spirit.
-somebody wishes they could stop time because of you.
-somebody praises God for your friendship and love.
-somebody can’t wait to see you.
-somebody loves you for who you are.
-somebody loves the way you make them feel.
-somebody wants to be with you.
-somebody wants you to know they are there for you.
-somebody’s glad that you’re his/her friend.
-somebody wants to be your friend.
-somebody stayed up all night thinking about you.
-somebody is alive because of you.
-somebody is wishing that you noticed him/her.
-somebody wants to get to know you better.
-somebody wants to be near you.
-somebody misses your advice/guidance.
-somebody has faith in you.
-somebody trusts you.
-somebody needs you to send them this letter
-somebody needs your support.
-somebody needs you to have faith in them.
-somebody will cry when they read this.
-somebody needs you to let them be your friend.
-somebody hears a song that reminds them of you.

Is the church a zoo?

Some church members are as stubborn as a mule about doing church work,
but as sly as a fox in their own business deals.

Some are as busy as a bee in spreading the latest gossip,
but as quiet as a mouse to spreading the gospel of Christ.

Many are as blind as a bat to see the needs of others,
but have eyes of a hawk to see the faults of a few.

Some are as eager as a beaver about a barbecue,
but as lazy as a dog about the prayer meetings.

Some will roar like a lion when things do not go just to suit them,
but they are as gentle as a lamb when they need the preacher of the church.

Some are as noisy as a blue jay when calling on the church for advice,
but as timid as a kitten about talking to the lost and as slow as a snail about visiting absentees and shut-ins.

Many are night owls on Saturday nights,
but “bed bugs” Sunday mornings,
and as scarce as hen’s teeth on Wednesday nights.

Sometimes the Lord rides …

Sometimes the Lord rides out the storm with us
and other times He calms the restless sea around us.
Most of all, He calms the storm inside us
in our deepest inner soul || Lloyd John Ogilvie

With Gratitude

A hundred years from now,

The thoughts would still be,
As fresh and truer still,

1927 – March 4, 2012

And I know this would never do,
But at least it is the beginning, dear father!

You may not have been the richest father,
But your love and concern was overflowing with richness!

You may not have been the wisest father,
But your thoughts and guidance were the best for me!

You may not have been the worldly ideal type,
But you were the ideal father for me!

I remember my tender young days,
When you hold me in your strong hands,
And we went to pick my tooth at the hospital,
Though it was painful,
I knew I would be okay because you were there with me.

When the school bells rang for the first time,
You were there with me,
In the hallowed halls of that big structure,
To assure me that it was okay to be awed and amazed!

Oh, dad! How time flies!
When I was ready to start a new life of my own,
You were there standing beside me,
Welcoming your “daughter” into our home,
With arms wide open and blessings on your lips.

When we were ready to welcome my first angel,
You were never far away.
Always a ready hand out-stretched,
More like a friend than a father!

Whenever life’s difficulties and obstacles
Rose to unchain the melody of life,
You were always there, saying,
“Son, it is time to move on!”

And when God called you home,
I knew that the road ahead,
Would be much more difficult
Without you – your wisdom and guidance.

But deep inside me,
In the deepest senses of my being,
I know that you’ll be with me, always,
Assuring, leading and guiding me!

Though the paths be difficult,
And the climb steep,
You will be egging me on,
As I take small faltering steps.

Dad, as I look back on the life that you lived,
So abundantly and so fully,
I’m so full of gratitude,
For being my father and making me your son!

Thanks, dad!
I’ll forever remain grateful,
For making me, me!

And this song is for you and me, dad-

There is a paradise of rest
On yonder tranquil shore,
Beyond the shadow and the gloom of night,
Where toil and tears are o’er.

Meet me there, oh, meet me there,
At the dawning of that morning bright and fair;
Meet me there, oh, meet me there,
In the land beyond the river meet me there.

There is a city crowned with light,
Its joy no tongue can tell;
For they who enter shall behold the King,
And in His presence dwell.

There is a crown laid up on high
That Christ the Lord will give
To those who patiently His coming wait,
And for His glory live.

Oh, then be faithful unto death,
Press on the heavenly way,
That we may enter through the gates of life
To realms of endless day.
——————————
Composer: Fanny Crosby || Some hymnals show the author as W.R. Lindsay, one of Fanny’s pseudonyms
Music: Ira D. Sankey

 

Most Inspiring Father’s Day Quotes

To be in your children’s memories tomorrow, you have to be in their lives today || Barbara Johnson

The righteous man walks in his integrity; His children are blessed after him || Proverbs 20:7

A father’s words are like a thermostat that sets the temperature in the house || Paul Lewis

He didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it || Clarence Budington Kelland

Children seldom misquote you. They more often repeat word for word what you shouldn’t have said || Mae Maloo

An effective father devotes himself to become an instrument and model of human experience to his children…accepts and affirms his children for who they are, appreciates them for what they are accomplishing, and covers them with affection because they are his || Gordon MacDonald

One father is more than a hundred Schoolmasters || George Herbert

The footsteps a child follows are most likely to be the ones his parents thought they had covered up || Unknown

He didn’t tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it || Clarence Budington Kelland

My father used to play with my brother and me in the yard.  Mother would come out and say, “You’re tearing up the grass.”  “We’re not raising grass,” Dad would reply.  “We’re raising boys” || Harmon Killebrew

When God measures a man, He puts the tape around the heart instead of the head || Unknown

Kids spell love T-I-M-E || John Crudele

How true Daddy’s words were when he said: ‘All children must look after their own upbringing.’ Parents can only give good advice or put them on the right paths, but the final forming of a person’s character lies in their own hands || Anne Frank

Father! – to God himself we cannot give a holier name || William Wordsworth

Henry James once defined life as that predicament which precedes death, and certainly nobody owes you a debt of honor or gratitude for getting him into that predicament.  But a child does owe his father a debt, if Dad, having gotten him into this peck of trouble, takes off his coat and buckles down to the job of showing his son how best to crash through it || Clarence Budington Kelland

Blessed indeed is the man who hears many gentle voices call him father! || Lydia M. Child

It is not flesh and blood but the heart which makes us fathers and sons || Johann Schiller

A father carries pictures where his money used to be || Unknown

When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around.  But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned in seven years || Unknown

Dad, you’re someone to look up to no matter how tall I’ve grown || Unknown

Old as she was, she still missed her daddy sometimes || Gloria Naylor

The greatest gift I ever had came from God; I call him Dad! || Unknown

Making the decision to have a child is momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body || Elizabeth Stone

Dad, your guiding hand on my shoulder will remain with me forever || Unknown

Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and with a breath of kindness blow the rest away || Dinah Craik

7 Inspiring Father’s Day Quotes

It is a wise father that knows his own child || William Shakespeare

That is the thankless position of the father in the family-the provider for all, and the enemy of all || J. August Strindberg

Sometimes the poorest man leaves his children the richest inheritance || Ruth E. Renkel

When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years || Mark Twain

I’ve had a hard life, but my hardships are nothing against the hardships that my father went through in order to get me to where I started || Bartrand Hubbard

I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father’s protection || Sigmund Freud

Lucky that man whose children make his happiness in life and not his grief, the anguished disappointment of his hopes || Euripedes