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Try To Have an Unspoken Thought !

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:28:08 +0100

The new year is here and so are several resolutions …of that I am sure. Personally, I do not make hard and fast resolutions but I do attempt to make changes each year. This year is no different and what I am going to work on is the title of the blog entry today. Having an unspoken thought is necessary in order to have peace and tranquility in this life. Some folks have been labeled as never having an unspoken thought…Donald Trump, Rosie O’Donnell, Whoopi Goldberg, and several others. I definitely do not want to be a member of this club. If I am completely honest however, I think that many times I could have been an official card carrying member of it. I desire to change that and pray that God will help me to do so.

A change like that first begins with realizing that it is just not necessary to always speak or write a thought even if it is the truth. The truth always stands strong by itself and it doesn’t need me or you or anyone else to openly state it. Sometimes it is important to speak up, to be heard, to make something known. Many times it is not. The wisdom that each of us needs to strive for is knowing the difference.

One of the benefits of growing older is realizing that it is not our responsibility to expose false or wrong statements all the time. Often the error or incorrect information will be found out in due time without our interference or involvement whatsoever. In fact, sometimes when we prematurely interject our opinions or view, the exact opposite result of what we desire may occur. Sometimes just sitting back, remaining quiet, letting circumstances and events play out is just what the doctor ordered and will bring forth the results that we desire much more quickly than if we openly express ourselves.

Something is to be said for the old adage “Silence is Golden.” Perhaps if we put it into practice on a regular basis and became more serious and thoughtful about listening instead of talking we would better off. Having a thought that doesn’t pass through our vocal chords may prove to be a real challenge for some of us and will not be easy but then again, nothing that is worth achieving ever is.

Don’t say out loud what you are thinking right now ! Ha :)

A Little Girl Puts Things in Perspective

Wed, 28 Dec 2011 22:58:30 +0100

I just spoke with Tony, and the doctors have not given any good news. The cancer that Hannah is fighting is Ewing Sarcoma. The prognosis with chemo is 10% survival, and 3-6 weeks without treatment. Please pray for God's Will to be done.

The above status was posted by one of my facebook friends names Ben Sauceda. Just a few days ago he posted that in just the last two weeks , his family received the shocking diagnosis that his little seven year old niece Hannah has stage 4 cancer and the prognosis for her future does not look promising. Just a couple short weeks ago her parents were most likely focusing on decorating, baking, wrapping, and then suddenly …their entire world turned upside down. Even since Ben began posting about his niece’s condition and asking for people to please pray, I have been doing just that. My mind is boggled at the terrible pain and hurt that her mom and dad must be experiencing over these last ten to fourteen days.

Not only has Hannah’s news caused me to pray for her and her parents but it has also put things into perspective. Before reading about this little gal’s plight, my mind was burdened about other things – things that matter but in the grand scheme of life…are actually fairly petty when one considers this family and this child who is fighting for her life. Now when I am praying for Hannah, I find myself also asking God to forgive me for being so self absorbed in my own small corner of life that seems to captivate my thoughts and attention.

Have you been disappointed lately? Upset about something? Are you holding a grudge or clinging to some bitterness brought on by some offense or hurt? Reconcile and let go and say a prayer for this little girl who needs it. Thank God for His provisions, for your family, for your health. Many are not experiencing those specific blessings this Holiday season. Sometimes we just need to refocus and rejoice !

Would you please say a prayer for Hannah right now? God bless you as you do!

Christmas Makes Me Miss My Mom

Wed, 28 Dec 2011 23:00:31 +0100

I lost her when I was just nineteen so she has been gone for thirty-six years now. In two more years she will be gone for twice as long as I had her with me in this life yet somehow I just never get used to it.

I have five brothers and no sisters …she was my only mom, I was her only daughter. Sounds fairly silly to state it like that but that pretty much sums it up. When she died suddenly one night of a burst brain aneurism, life as I knew it changed instantly.

Over the years, the pain of her absence dulled and the agony of her passing gradually lessened and my new normal became life without her. My children were born, they grew, they graduated, got married, now have children of their own. They never knew her and likewise she never knew any of them. It is a loss and a hurt that never fully went away but did not crush my heart every day as time went by…..except at Christmas.

My mom was a Christmas mom – Why is that?

Because she baked cookies for every house on the street, arranged them in boxes and distributed her delicious baked goods to everyone we knew.

Because she would wrap presents for days on end in her bedroom telling me to “not come in” because her room was filled with surprises for my brothers and I.

Because she bought chocolate Santas and talked about how the real Santa would be landing on the roof that special night.

Because she would turn on the news to see exactly where his sleigh was in the sky and sure enough the news anchor would give a report as to exactly what state Santa was flying over at that time.

Because she and I watched a show together every Christmas called “Chris Kringle”

Because she believed in Jesus and prayed often

Because she made Christmas simply magical for her family.

Because she was so exhausted at the end of every Christmas that she would fall fast asleep in her red rocking chair.

Louise Houston Simpson - a beautiful mom at all times but especially missed at Christmas !

How Did I Ever get to be a Senior Citizen?

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 23:55:58 +0100

Like many folks who turn fifty-five years of age I suppose today is another one of life’s many milestones. I now hold the title of “Senior Citizen.” How did I get here? It seems like not long ago that I was running up and down my high school gymnasium on my girls’ high school basketball team. Memories of crazy college life, burping my babies on my lap, and helping with my kids’ science projects have now given way to reading stories to my grand babies. How in the world did this happen so fast?

The Bible tells all of us that our life is like a vapor- here today, gone tomorrow. When we are young, we hear those words but they are not real to us. We are somehow aware of the truth of that scripture but when we are worried about getting our driver’s license, or what college we are going to or who we have a crush on, the idea of life being a quick ride is just not reality.

Now it is. Don’t get me wrong- I love my life but I also can do math. It has occurred to me that my journey is most likely two thirds over and that is an optimistic guess ! What have been the most significant and greatest days of my life? Hands down, the most significant year of my life was my twenty first- the year that I trusted Christ as my Savior. He has changed everything about my life- the way that I think, what is important to me, the way that we have raised our family…the list is endless . Even though I have never seen Him, He is so real to me and I have never been the same since I knelt in our little rat trap college apartment and told Him that I believed that He is who He claims He is and asked Him to forgive me for what He said I was …a sinner lost without Him. Significant day number two was Tom’s and my wedding day almost 36 years ago. He was my best friend way back then in 1975 and still is today. He knows me better than anyone….poor guy.

The next highlights were when all four of our children came into our lives- they have given us frustration, concern, tears, gray hairs, but mostly a lot of pride, joy, and much to be grateful for. Because of who they are, I can be restful and content, not worried and anxious as I head into the latter years of my life and that is an incredible gift and blessing. I am so privileged to be Erik, Ben, Matty, and Kasey’s mom.

Now comes the icing on the cake, the ribbon on the present, the cherry on the sundae – the grand babies! Nothing gives me more joy and happiness than squeezing Trent, Nicole, Benny, Brooke, and Brianna and loving all over them. I know…I am your typically obnoxious grandparent…something that I said I never wanted to be. It is an incurable condition however so I have resigned myself to be a an official member of the club ! God has surely smiled on Tom and I by blessing us with those five little people – ( and hopefully many more to come – hint , hint to my kids- ha)

So yes, my life is a vapor but I am thanking God that it has been such a sweet one so far. Perfect? No…definitely not. Some hard and difficult days ? Absolutely – but still wouldn’t trade places with anyone in the world. Thanks to God who deserves all the glory !

I Am So Proud to be an American !

Wed, 04 May 2011 14:51:23 +0100

Living in the Unites States of America and being an American is a privilege and a blessing that I do not take for granted. There is a reason why people from all corners of the earth try to come to our great country and that is because we are the greatest nation on earth. We have a multitude of problems but the plusses far outweigh any minuses and that fact is proven again and again every day as individuals are arrested trying to cross over the borders into our land of freedom and opportunity.

This past Sunday evening was a proud and great evening for all Americans with the news of the death of Osama Bin Laden at the hands of a Navy Seal team who invaded a compound in Pakistan in the middle of the night. I was of course proud of the expertise and quality of our special forces team that nabbed Bin Laden as we all know the level of excellence of our Navy Seals, Army Rangers, Green Berets, Marine Recon etc. What really made me burst with pride however was our perseverance in pursuing this evil enemy. I still remember the promise of George Bush to the families who lost loved ones in 911. He told them that America would relentlessly hunt down those responsible for the vicious and cowardly murder of almost three thousand innocent lives. He said that we would not give up, not stop until we found and punished the culprits. In his recent memoirs, George W. wrote that his greatest regret was not getting Bin Laden. His dogged determination and work towards this goal certainly laid the groundwork which thankfully was continued by President Obama. I applaud our current president and his continued focus on this goal thus giving the green light for this latest successful mission. I am most happy for every family whose lives were changed forever because they lost someone who they dearly loved on 911. Eliminating Bin Laden will not bring back those who were lost but perhaps it will bring in some small measure some solace to their grieving and wounded hearts.

My hope and prayer now is that the unified and proud American spirit that we have seen splashed across the TV screen with people chanting and waving the flag will continue. My fear is that it will not simply because that is human nature. We tend to celebrate in the moment and then passion dissipates. Let us commit ourselves to not allowing that to happen. Let us all decide to stay fervent in our determination, our love, our commitment to the blessing of being called an American and the honor that accompanies that great title !

God bless our brave and distinguished military !!! We are thankful for you !!!

Everyone Wonders What is Beyond the Grave

Tue, 26 Apr 2011 14:30:32 +0100

The April 19^th issue of Time magazine will be one of the biggest sellers in the history of this periodical. Why? Because the title is “WHAT IF THERE IS NO HELL ?” Such an appealing thought isn’t it? Too bad it is completely untrue. There most definitely is a hell which is bottomless, dark, and described as pure torture and torment where one suffers excruciating pain in the lake of fire. Where a soul is ever dying but never dead.

I have already lost some of my readers with my first paragraph. Why is that? Because none of us like to think or imagine the reality of such a horrific and vile place. Yet it exists as surely as this computer on which I am typing. How can I know this? Because the Bible tells me so. The great news however is that it also tells me how to avoid going there. God’s Book tells me that Jesus loves me…so much so that he came to this earth , lived for thirty-three years, loved and ministered to people, lived a sinless life and then died an ugly and painful death upon a tree so that we would not have to go to the very place that Time magazine is suggesting does not exist.

The problem with my description of hell and talking about what the Scriptures tell us is that the truth is just not as nice of a thought as the idea of hell not existing. And after all , has not our society become one in which we tend to desire to submerse ourselves in that which makes us feel good? Hey, I would love to be able to buy into the theory that there is no eternal place of punishment. To be completely honest, I have always somehow wondered why God would send His only Son to die in our place. Just like the title of that song that is sung at Christmas time, I have often thought “What a strange way to save the World.” However my job is not to understand why God came up with the plan of creation and life and salvation in the way that He did. My responsibility is to believe it and then receive it. My eternal destination depends on whether I do or not. It is as simple as that. The devil’s plan and scheme is to muddy it up and make it seem very gray, very complicated and not quite so clear ; hence, the Time magazine article. It puts just enough of a question mark in the ignorant, unlearned mind that it will sadly succeed in giving folks a false sense of security that all is well beyond the grave which is the most damning lie that any reader of that article will believe in their life time.

TIME – it is so ironic that the very name of this magazine is the very thing that folks will be spending eternally in the very place that it questions the existence of. Be discerning, be wise, be a reader and believer of the Word of God, not the word of Man.

Grandparenthood is a Grand Ol' Time !

Thu, 07 Apr 2011 16:58:22 +0100

Just Wish We Could Have Grandkids First……Then Our Kids !

I was blessed and honored to be invited to Grandparents Day today at school. Two young lads Wes and Austin have adopted me as their Mimi and were nice enough to ask me to come join them for the day.

As I sat in the gym for the Welcome breakfast, and then in the classrooms and chapel afterwards I noticed how calm and relaxed all of the grandparents were. They joked and laughed and just simply enjoyed the day just as I did. That got me to thinking how I wish I could have had that same casual demeanor as a parent. You know….where most of what the little ones do we simply consider to be cute and adorable. Where we don’t care all that much if they answer a question wrong or if they are sitting still and behaving their best. Unfortunately however ….I think I was like a lot of other parents in that I was fairly intense at times.

The whole morning made me think that life is backwards. Even the pastor joked at lunch time making the statement “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could have had our grandkids first, then our kids?” One only truly understands that statement once they have reached that grand and glorious stage of having grandkids. After all, I really don’t care if my grandkids run the fastest, or look the best, or get the highest grades…in fact, I honestly hope that they don’t stress over such things. I just want them to feel secure, loved, happy, and understanding the truth about God. That is what matters to me.

The truth is the passage of time is usually the first requirement for obtaining wisdom. Wish it did not have to be that way but that is the natural order. It is also such a great feeling to be able to just enjoy and celebrate with grandkids without having to do the training. I am no longer responsible for them being polite, responsible, honest, hard working, obedient, and respectful. Oh, I can surely bear influence and help them out in these areas but I am no longer the one holding the bag……that’s their mom and dad’s job….and it feels wonderful !

“ Grandparent “ – Yep….they got the word right….because it is a grand ol’ time in one’s life and one that I hope and pray all would get the blessing to experience !

Honest Abe...Where are Ya?

Wed, 30 Mar 2011 16:03:58 +0100

"You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong. You cannot help the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer. You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich. You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves."
Abraham Lincoln

I love Abraham Lincoln for many reasons. He was one of our founding fathers and early presidents yet I also admire his profound wisdom that was revealed in so many of his quotes to include the one above.

How badly we need President Lincoln’s understanding and grasp of the human spirit in today’s government. He understood that the poor are not helped by taking from those that are not. He knew that folks are not strengthened and uplifted by continually providing for them instead of helping them to begin to attempt to help themselves. This truth begins in the early days of our lives and continues through to the grave. Our tiny children do not feel accomplished because we give them a trophy and tell them that they are “special.” They earn that pride and esteem by working hard towards a goal and learning to sacrifice and perfect themselves. Show me some little guy who just batted in the winning run for his little league team and I will show you a boy who knows the thrill and joy of real accomplishment. On the other hand, show me a little boy who never connected the ball with his bat and yet receives a shiny trophy because he is “special” at the end of the season and I will show you a boy who knows deep down that the ceremonial trophy handout was simply that… a nice gesture that really made no difference deep in his heart and gut.

So it is with adults and work. People who need jobs and work most definitely need our help and prayers and we should do everything we can to help them to help themselves. We begin to cripple and hinder their growth however when we begin to foster a sense of entitlement within them that they deserve what others have regardless of their lack of effort, training, and sacrifice. This is a memo that our current president needs to get as well as his groupies. I recently read an interview where an umemployed woman was asked if she had been actively seeking a job. She replied “ No, because Obama is going to get me the money I need”. The interviewer said “ Where is he going to get the money for you?” and she replied “ I don’t know …but he is…that is why we all voted for him….we love Obama.”

Enough said. Honest Abe…..where are you when we need you?

Be Kind To Your Mind !

Wed, 20 Oct 2010 19:33:50 +0100

Lately I have been very bothered by something. It is the incredible amount of negative, violent and just all around bad information that goes into our brains on a daily basis. Just yesterday, I saw more pictures of the young woman who faked an assault on her by throwing acid into her own face. This incident happened a while ago but yes… that’s right…she doused her own face with acid and then blamed it on an alleged random assault from some stranger. The entire story was fabricated. I have seen all sorts of hoaxes but rarely do we see someone willing to inflict serious life scarring damage to themselves all for what? For some attention, for fifteen seconds of fame? Probably not…this baffling incident sadly points to a very mentally disturbed person who is literally crying out for help.

Then yesterday the appalling meter went over the top. A story broke about a couple who had a twenty-one year old daughter who was killed in a horrible car accident this past July. She was a young mother of two and she died a violent death. Her parents have had to endure the loss of their daughter and all the grief that accompanies that yet yesterday they were subjected to an even more cruel fate. They received graphic pictures of their dying daughter’s body on their cell phones. It seems that one of the first responders to that scene back in July snapped a few shots of this poor young woman who had just died a tragic death . These photos were then sent to others and soon went viral on the internet. These pictures were bloody, gruesome, and very graphic. The mother was on the news yesterday weeping as she talked of how these recent cell photos are the first images that now come to her mind when she thinks of her daughter. I sat there watching this senseless and horrific report and simply asked myself ….why?

I am beginning to approach the point of deliberately turning off the news when these type of stories break. In other words, I am considering consciously making the decision to remain ignorant to some of what is taking place in the world. Perhaps this is denial on my part, perhaps it is backward or narrow of me, I am not sure. What I do know however is that I begin to dwell on these stories more than I should. Just when I think I can no longer be shocked any more than I have already, another outrageous and truly bizarre story will break that is so revolting that I have trouble believing it. When these types of news events begin occurring on a frequent basis as what seems to be the case lately, it can begin to affect our thinking. I just find myself mulling over the details of these grim incidents and when I do, it can begin to consume my thinking. Perhaps this is why the Bible tells us that “whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report, if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” – (Philippians 4:8)

As always, God’s Word has wisdom and instruction that I am going to endeavor to follow. I do not desire for my thoughts to be bogged down with the extreme evil that runs rampant in our world. Some readers may think me to be an ostrich...wanting to stick my head in the sand and not facing the realities of the world in which we live. Perhaps that is right, I do not know. All I am certain of is that I do not want to be dwelling on such things. No…instead I desire to be kind to my mind. God help me to do so.

Sarah Palin

Wed, 15 Sep 2010 17:53:09 +0100

Whether you like Sarah Palin or not, you cannot argue that she is a hugely influential person. This morning more than just a few folks have won elections in the eleventh hour and it is no coincidence that Sarah Palin threw her political weight and support behind these people in the last couple of days before the election. Many of the news stations today are reporting that her endorsement and backing was an important deciding factor in these victories.

Let’s face it, you either love her or hate her. The left smacks their lips at every opportunity to mock her or poke fun at her from every angle. One of their favorite arrows that they love to shoot at her is the “dumb” arrow. Every chance they get to describe her as less than bright they jump on. What is truly puzzling about their conclusion is that I just do not know or see a lot of dull and unintelligent people achieving what she has achieved.nor do I see them making the money that she makes. No…I don’t buy the dumb theory about this lady at all…because if she is dumb, she is as dumb as a fox.

Make no mistake about it – those that hate on Sarah Palin either fear her power or they are irritated by her clout and charisma. She is a no nonsense, down to earth, plain talking woman whose message has resonated with millions of Americans in a huge and intense way and some do not like it…period. On top of that, she is attractive and stylish which just further rubs them the wrong way. She is informed , decisive, and possesses a tremendous amount of old fashioned common sense. In a nutshell she is the complete package that scares her opponents.

I for one am a huge fan and supporter and I am thankful for her political views and stances. She represents what millions of Amercians believe to be right and honorable which are virtues that are rapidly diminishing in our society today. There will be some who read this blog who will completely disagree with my view on this lady who has made such an impact in our country over these last two years. That does not bother me at all. I know a genuine and worthy individual when I see one and Sarah Palin is the real deal !