None can believe how powerful prayer is, and what it is able to effect, but those who have learned it by experience.
I know of no better thermometer to your spiritual temperature than this, the measure of the intensity of your prayer.
From 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
Harsh rhetoric harms
Angry political camps—
Nation tears apart
Division falls back
Country must always come first—
Democracy breathes
Conflict’s stormy waves
Navigating nation’s course—
Finding common ground
Information is not knowledge. Experience is knowledge.
There are two ways to live your life–one is as though nothing is a miracle, the other is as though everything is a miracle.
Originally published in February, 2020, this humorous short story features the wills of a serious coffee drinker and a determined server, who wants to have the last word.
Photo by Daria Shevtsova on Pexels.com
Wednesday morning broadcasts the arrival of another breakfast meeting for Billy and his other retired friends. Once a week, he meets his five best buds for hot coffee, delicious food, and welcome conversation at Bob’s Diner.
He always wears his favorite plaid, flannel shirt (perhaps you recall Al Borland from “Tool Time”). His faded, tractor green “John Deere” cap covers his nearly bald head, but his smile always catches his favorite server’s attention.
Flo has been working for the diner ever since Mel’s Diner closed (you might remember Mel and Alice—they became quite an item). She holds her own with humor and a smile, always managing to take care of Billy and his pals every Wednesday morning.
As Flo is scurrying around the diner with her always full coffee pot, she sets it down near Billy’s table as she takes another order. Billy appropriates the full pot of freshly brewed refills for his own private use, and sets it right next to his nearly empty cup. He tells Flo, “Thanks my dear. Now you won’t need to worry about refilling my cup.”
Billy remarks to his friends, “Ain’t life great!”
Billy enjoys his coffee, probably too much. The manager takes a look and shakes his head . . . as his profits shrink with every coffee pot Billy drinks. He motions Flo to come over for a moment, and they share a quick word.
Flo formulates a plan to take care of Billy’s endless and bottomless coffee drinking.
By the end of the breakfast meeting, the gray-haired trio times two has solved just about all of the world’s problems for another week. Billy has nearly eaten a whole hog as he has devoured crispy bacon, honey-baked ham, and perfectly browned sausage links, along with the usual fixings of hash browns, eggs, and pancakes. It’s time for the check please.
Billy surveys his bill, and his smile stretches to a frown. Reading on, he sees that he has been charged for a whole pot of coffee. He thinks to himself, “What’s this?”
Billy’s check has a special note at the bottom, “Cheaper to drink coffee by the cup instead of by the pot!”
Photo by Marcelo Chagas on Pexels.com
When times are tough, the Lord is our only security.
From Matthew 6:25, 31-32: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For it is the gentiles who seek all these things, and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.”
From Matthew 14:23-25: “And after He [Jesus] had dismissed the crowds, He went up the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning He came walking toward them on the sea.”
Facing challenges
Feel nourishing calm
Fed with Living Bread
Holy Spirit’s balm
Sailing into wind
Swelling, stormy waves
Seeking God’s compass
Eternal grace saves
Witnessing hardships
Gale arrives today
God never leaves us
Teaching us to pray
Smothering tempest
Evil’s wrath scolding
Finding God’s refuge
His peace beholding
Overcoming storms
Daily lessons teach
Hearing Gospel’s call
Rescued from tide’s breach
From Proverbs 10:25: “When the tempest passes, the wicked are no more, but the righteous are established forever.”
God alone can give us songs in the night.
From Mark 5:35-36: “While He was still speaking, some people came from the synagogue leader’s house to say, ‘Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?’ But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the synagogue leader, “Do not be afraid; only believe.'”
Growing up, young lad’s treasured dreams
Playing on big league baseball team
Fun-filled adventure marks most days
Journey’s actions conquer life’s maze
Thoughts of family seem remote
Happy to fish from Dad’s new boat
Learning life’s lessons on God’s watch
Scripture’s heroes always topnotch
Far too soon, years advance along
Melodies of love, life’s new song
Marriage joins young man with his bride
Sons and daughters, soon at their side
God’s fatherly lessons made clear
Maturity quiets each fear
Fatherhood blesses this Dad’s soul
Making him feel alive and whole
Collecting lifetime of keepsakes
Children love his homemade milkshakes
Years move quickly, home’s empty nest
Dad’s wisdom guides each child’s quest
Creating humbleness of heart
Fatherhood ignites life’s jumpstart
This informative post will be posted on Saturday along with my usual writing. We can all appreciate some of the lesser known facts from around the world.
The Emmy Award derives its name from the Immy–a slang term for the image orthicon, a tube that was used in television cameras until the 1960s.
Steve Martin honed his talent for crafting balloon animals, a staple of his early stand-up act, while working at Disneyland’s Main Street Magic Shop in the early 1960s.
These facts have been discovered in I NEVER KNEW THAT by David Hoffman (2009).
Seek freedom and become captive to your desires. Seek discipline and find your liberty.
It is impossible to live in the past, difficult to live in the present, and a waste to live in the future.
American author Frank Herbert (1920-1986) was best known for his science fiction writing. His novel DUNE (1965) and its sequels brought him wide acclaim.
Big Sky Buckeye 