I have much to be thankful for... by Tony C

Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours! May we never take for granted the many, many blessings that come from a loving Father.

Voices by Linda Maynard

On Kingdom Bloggers we are each looking at a parable that has meaning to us.

I would like to discuss one that relates to a loved one and a little boy fighting for his very life.

Luke 18:1-8
Jesus was telling them a parable about their need to pray continuously and not to be discouraged. He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected people.  In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him, asking, ‘Give me justice in this case against my adversary.’ For a while he refused but finally said to himself, I don’t fear God or respect people, but I will give this widow justice because she keeps bothering me. Otherwise, there will be no end to her coming here and embarrassing me.” The Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. Won’t God provide justice to His chosen people who cry out to Him day and night? Will He be slow to help them? I tell you, He will give them justice quickly. But when the Human One comes, will He find faithfulness on earth?”

My loved one has suffered from Schizophrenia for most of his life. I have agonized over his illness. It has affected not only him, but those who love him.

He is a brilliant. He can fix just about anything. He is artistic. He was a bricklayer. Bricklaying, in and of itself, is an art.

He has been unable to hold down a job for years.

I have struggled, questioning, is his illness from a neurological malformation or is there demonic activity? Today, I hold the opinion that it is a combination .Having done some research; there are opinions, that a developing child in the womb could be exposed to a virus. The other portion, the demonic influence, is something I cannot ignore. . They say that the eyes are the window to the soul. Through his eyes, I saw what I could describe to you as an evil presence. I do not believe he is demon possessed, but I do believe that he is demon harassed.

He once told me while bathing; he positions himself, so that his ears are underwater. He does this, trying to silence the voices he hears. We can look at his reasoning as faulty, but he is a tormented soul. My heart grieved. You’d have to be hardhearted not to grieve as well.

More recently, a dear friend of mine had a terrible tragedy happen to her 4 year old grandson, Robby.

He had an accident, with a log falling on him, trapping him. He reportedly wasn’t breathing for 25 minutes and was in cardiac arrest ,before being brought to the hospital. He has been diagnosed with severe brain damage. BUT, his family is exploring all possibilities of further treatment, and whether, by medical means or an intervention by God, we join his family, believing for total restoration of his brain.  

How does it relate to the parable? 

I believe that the Lord, years ago, “told” me that He was going to heal my loved one. Robby’s family believes for the same.

Perhaps you are saying “ Whoa! Wait a minute!” This woman is talking about demons and hearing God and promises of a healing for these two lives.” I understand that reaction, as I too have discounted such activities, in the past.

Now, these are realities to me. I respect your opinion to discount my beliefs. But the possibility and the hope that is within me, is as real as anything I can think of.

This parable gives me the gumption to continue to be persistent in praying for their restoration… one to full sanity and the other, having a brain restored physically. It is a hope that keeps me continually seeking.

  Oh yes, I falter and sometimes think I have made this entire miracle thing up. But then, a righteous anger rises up in me, saying, “ Enough! Of suffering!”

That is when I can go back to being persistent. Strength and faith arise, even though the evidence of a miracle has not presented itself yet.


Listen to Matthew 7:7 and 7:8


Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.

For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

The original language tells us to ask and keep on asking, seek and keep on seeking, knock and keep on knocking.

That’s where the strength to be persistent comes in.

We continue to pray, because we know the Lord has the answer and IS the answer.

God is not deaf, yet we are commanded to pray without ceasing.

Would you join me, in the prayer for these two precious souls?

Let our voices deafen the voices that torment my loved one and the one that mockingly says that Robby cannot be healed.

Receive the Word of God! by Cliff Silliman

My favorite parable is the parable of the sower. It is recorded three times in Scripture in Matthew 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-20, and Luke 8:1-18. Since parables are picture stories of common things known to the hearers, it is not surprising that as a landscaper this one would speak to me.

Jesus explains the parable to His close disciples after explaining to them why He does not explain it to the multitudes that were crowding around Him. Matthew 13:13, “Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.” So I pray, “Lord, even though You explain it, let me understand what You have for me in this parable.”

There are four different conditions that the seed falls on: by the wayside, stony places, among the thorns, and good ground. We desire our hearts to be the good soil to be able to receive the seed, which is the Word of God’s kingdom.

Twice in the Old Testament the Lord speaks to Israel and says break up your fallow (untilled) ground. The first place is in Jeremiah 4:1-4. It basically says, “Prepare your heart to hear what God is saying to you.” It also says to not sow among the thorns. The second verse about the soil of our hearts is in Hosea 10:12-13. In this Scripture it says we should keep preparing the soil of our hearts to receive the seed/Word until He comes and rains righteousness on us.

It is clear from all these Scriptures that the responsibility of having the soil of our hearts soft and tilled and ready to receive what God has for us--is ours. He wants us to develop a listening ear for His voice. The Lord will provide the water so the seed will germinate. He rains His mercy, grace and righteousness upon us to cause growth and a flourishing life.

How can I make sure that my heart is good soil? How can I be sure that my heart is not hardened, or overcome by the cares of the world, or full of thistles or stones? I believe it is in openness to hear the voice of the Lord.

God has so much for us. We need to expect to hear from Him. He desires us to be listening to receive wisdom, fresh and new revelation, and insights from Him continually. Just as in any relationship we develop more intimacy if we listen with open hearts, waiting our turn to speak, for the Lord Jesus loves two way communications with His beloved ones. Do you have ears to hear what God wants to say to you right now?

This morning as I read through the parable of the sower I saw many insights that might speak to people’s hearts. However, God wants to simply speak this: BREAK UP THE FALLOW GROUND! PREPARE THE SOIL OF YOUR HEARTS TO RECEIVE FROM ME. MY WORD IS SEED THAT WILL PRODUCE A HUNDRED FOLD. WILL YOU LISTEN TO ME?

The Kingdom of God...In Your Face!

The kingdom of God is NOW. Raw. Real. As Dr. Sean McDonough says, it is in your face! One of the most exciting things about life as a Christian is to see the in-breaking of the Kingdom of Heaven into time. Since I can’t write anything as compelling and intelligent and moving as Dr. McDonough, one of my favorite professors at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, I thought I would share his chapel message from last year about our limited understanding of the powerful reality of God’s Kingdom.
Click on this link to view his talk, "The Kingdom of God":  https://vimeo.com/32333683. Please don't miss this!

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” Leonardo da Vinci

The topic this week for your Kingdom Bloggers is very appropriately the Kingdom of God, and more specifically, our individual favorite parable on the matter.

About a year ago, I went through Matthew Chapter 13 with my Sunday School class over a two month period. My goal for the study was to give the class the biblical perspective on the Kingdom from the very words of Christ. In preparing for the series, I discovered a few new things myself that were very enlightening (which is often the case in my preparations).

The synoptic Gospel of Matthew gives a very eloquent account of the drastic influence of the ministry of Jesus highlighted by His famous Sermon of the Mount in Chapters 5-7, where Jesus constantly gives reference to the Kingdom of Heaven. We understand that Matthew uses the phrase Kingdom of Heaven opposed to Kingdom of God because he was writing and ministering primarily to the Jews who considered the name of Yaweh too sacred to utter or write. The two are in fact synonymous.

Jesus seems to be effectively communicating His message and has much momentum in His ministry when suddenly...Jesus is accused by those pesky, trouble-making Pharisees of driving a demon out of a man in the name of Satan (Beelzebul) in Chapter 12.

After all of the wonderful things He had taught and demonstrated, the miracles, all of the compassion He had poured out during this concentrated period of time, the hurt from being accused of acting from evil and not from Good must have been devastating. An exhausted Jesus begins to teach further about the Kingdom of God using several analogies including the Parable of the Sower and the Parable of Weeds at the beginning of Chapter 13. To add insult to injury, it is at this point that even the disciples begin to question Jesus about what it all means...

I can't help but believe Jesus must have been completely dejected. How could the very men that had been by His side and ministered right along with Him not comprehend what He was talking and teaching about all that time? When I read Matthew Chapter 13, I visualize a huge sigh coming from our Savior between verses 36 and 37.

It is here where my personal favorite parable concerning the Kingdom of God comes from Jesus...

⁴⁷ “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. ⁴⁸ When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. ⁴⁹ This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous ⁵⁰ and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Simplistically brilliant for Christ to break the matter down into terms most, if not all, of His disciples could directly relate!

We have the benefit of hindsight today and the Word that frames our points of reference as Christians. Despite that fact, there still exist much confusion and dissent among followers. We often complicate and cloud the Gospel with tradition and dogma. I can't help but believe that same sigh I imagine coming from Jesus in Matthew Chapter 13 still occurs today as He prepares to return.

My point isn't to advocate a dumbing down of our doctrine...not at all. But at the same time, just how complicated is the message to begin with when our focus is directed on two primary commandments?

You can find those over in Matthew 22, by the way...

Inconvenient Truth or Unconscionable Truth? by Linda Maynard

The Sanctity of Life

Sanctity=blessedness, Godliness, sacredness

The greatest destroyer of peace is abortion because if a mother can kill her own child, what is left for me to kill you and you to kill me? There is nothing in between…Mother Teresa

America needs to get over its love affair with the fetus…Jocelyn Elders, former Surgeon General

Wow…two very different opinions about life, specifically life in the womb.

The cries of the aborted unborn will continue to reverberate in our land. THAT is the sound I heard, when the results of this election were announced. Our Leader clearly does not support the unborn.

Can I get through this without weeping? The grief I am experiencing mirrors the anguish of our Lord.

Some of us, who would say we are pro life, are appalled at posters that show mutilated babies. Shocked?…we should be. They represent a reality that is hard to face.

When I first heard about partial birth abortions (which our President approves of) I felt sick. In case you don’t know, I am going to tell you. A baby is partially born, enough for the head to emerge. The Dr. then pierces the baby’s skull and sucks out the brain. The body is then delivered

It is said that a person, who is not the victim of violence, yet witnesses the violence, is negatively affected. I think of that for myself, when I remember a phone call from a friend, as she called in obvious distress. She was waiting with her daughter to “deliver” the unwanted baby. Hers was about 5 months. This was a saline solution abortion. The labor would take 20 hours, give or take. What she would deliver is a dead and burnt baby.

That phone call haunts me still.

Many women grieve over pregnancies that end in miscarriage. Now, how could that be for those who say a fetus is not a life? Are these mothers grieving over a “blob” of tissue?

Over the years, I have prayed for many women who have had abortions. Without fail, each woman felt they knew the sex of their baby. Most of them had a name for their baby.

Whether they were pro choice or pro life at the time of their abortions, they regretted their decision.

Thankfully, abortion is a sin that the Lord forgives. He is merciful and filled with kindness. He has compassion for these mothers, as He loves their babies.

The hard reality though, even though forgiven, we have to live with the consequence of our decisions.

Just so I don’t appear holier than thou, I too was faced with a decision years ago. I became pregnant at 17…unmarried.

I can still remember the terror I felt about having to tell my parents. It was almost too much for me to face anger and even more so, the disappointment they would feel. I hid my pregnancy for 5 months.

Reflecting on my choice to continue the pregnancy, I shudder to think it would have been so easy to get rid of my child. Nobody would have to know. Nobody would be angry or disappointed in me. Nobody would have to feel ashamed.

So, I understand the pressure, the bargaining and the reasoning. Anything to justify it.  Many of them are scared and don’t see a way out.

I did end up relinquishing my son for adoption, which in and of itself was an agonizing decision. Yet, giving him a chance at life is a decision I will never regret.

Another disturbing thing is that tissue and body parts from aborted babies are part of a lucrative business. Does this remind you of Nazi Germany and how the skin of the Jews was used for lampshades?

Then there is the issue of stem cells. Thankfully, it has been discovered recently that stem cells from the person who needs them can mete out similar results.

Another disturbing trend though, is sex selection. We thought that only happened in China or other countries. No, it is happening right here in the United States. I mean what business of ours that a couple has 3 girls and want a boy now? (You know for the dad’s sake).They can keep conceiving and aborting that “wrong sex” child.

Yes, this issue is one in which I am very passionate and narrow-minded according to some people’s opinions.

On this one, I would rather err for life’s sake.

A face book friend penned this beautiful poem.

Life is a Precious Thing

By Cheri Neitzel

A Life is a precious thing…not a thing to waste

             A thing that should not be thrown down

                            Into the abyss

Even if there was no eternity

              Even if there was no more to follow-

To take a life that was designed to hold and to carry

                        Honor and Purpose

        And throw it down into the abyss

                              Is WRONG

          Is SO wrong…it is SO perverse  

God designed each and every life to carry a purpose,

        To HONOR Him

                    To GLORIFY Him

                                To reflect His Beauty and His glory!

No Life should just be thrown down  into the Abyss

Down

             Down

                        Down

                                   Never to reach its Purpose

         

Should Christians Get Tattoos? by Jenna Vick Silliman

I used to think Christians should not get tattoos. When I was in my young adult years, and a new Christian, forming opinions of my own, tattoos were worn by motorcycle gangs or by criminals. My dad told me stories of men in the military getting tattoos when they were drunk. I was a good Christian girl, a book worm, an ‘A’ student, and a Daddy’s girl. Probably the most outlandish thing I did in my young adult years was to wear a halter top with no bra. That sums up my teenage rebellion. To me getting a tattoo was as wrong as a driving my VW Bug the wrong way on a one way street.

Jump forward in time to the year 2003. When my older children launched out on their own I was stunned when they talked about getting tattoos. Out of the recesses of my memory banks I sputtered out some Old Testament verse in the law against marking your body. Of course, we don’t keep the other zillions of laws such as wearing tassels on our garments or not eating bacon—so to pull out that obscure verse was ridiculous.

My oldest son, Daniel, at college got a tattoo with his good buddies. They all had a line from a novel tattooed on their upper arms. Our third-born, David, got a big cross entwined with roses on his shoulder. These tattoos bothered me and I didn’t get it, but they were covered by shirts for the most part, and my sons were old enough to make their own decisions, so I stayed quiet in my disapproval. I think it was when my lovely daughter away at college decided to tattoo the Hebrew symbol for wisdom on her ankle that I had to come to terms with my negative feelings.

I began to ask other young adults about their tattoos. My three oldest and these other young adults all talked about expressing in their “body art” what was essential in life and of most vital importance to them. I asked others, “If you were to get a tattoo, what would you get?” It is a most interesting topic for discussion! Even people who are dead set against tattoos, have interesting answers that reveal their heart about what symbol represents something of vital importance to them, or what expresses them the best. Such a discussion is a great way to get to know someone better!

Often Christians make little boxes around what is acceptable and what is not, according to their own experience and viewpoint. God seems to ignore these limitations. His love and His power are so beyond our wildest imagination. He loves to push the envelope and blow our minds by working outside our religious boundaries. I read a great quote (I don’t know who said it.) that expresses God’s heart: “When tattoos, piercings, ragged clothes, the smell of alcohol, pregnancy outside of marriage, or any such issue, gives a church "cause" to ask that person to leave, know that Christ Jesus will also leave with them.”

God meets us anywhere, anytime, with anything we got going—if our hearts are turned toward Him! The heart, that’s what is important to God.  The shepherd boy, David, did not look the part to Samuel—he could not possibly be the one God wanted for king! I Samuel 16:7 says, “But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look at his appearance…for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

Not always, of course, but often people have tattoos done to express their heart. When I realized this, I began to see them as a beautiful expression or an art form. When I turned 50 years old I began to daydream about getting a tattoo. I decided I wanted a flying dove to symbolize my spirit flying on the winds of the Holy Spirit. I added an 8, which is the symbol of infinity, to signify unbroken fellowship with God 24/7. This is my heart’s desire. “In His presence is fullness of joy.” (See Psalm 16:11 & Acts 2:28.) I went on the Internet and got ideas and began drawings of my tattoo.

When I told my husband, he said, “WHAT!!!? I can’t believe it! Why in the world would you want a tattoo?!” I explained and asked him to think about it. He was shocked, shaking his head in disapproval, and dead set against it. I prayed and asked God about it. I said, “Papa is it okay with You for me to get a tattoo? If so, I need you to change my husband’s mind, provide the money, and three Scriptures to positively confirm it too.”

Without even trying, three Bible verses pro tattoos showed up one by one in a short time. Here they are: “Another will write on his hand: ‘BELONGING TO THE LORD.’ (See Isaiah 44:5.) “You are engraved on the palms of My hands.” (See Isaiah 49:16.) “On His thigh Jesus has a name inscribed saying, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” (See Rev. 19:16.)

I saw some tats I really liked done by a local tattoo artist in Port Angeles, WA named Marcus. His phone number is 360-477-2754. I spoke with Him and showed him my rough draft drawing. He changed it a bit and made it even better. He told me to bring it in when I was ready and it would take about 15 minutes. When I asked about cost he said it would be $75 but if I had it done on my birthday he would give me the percentage discount of my age. I was about to turn 52 by that time, so my tattoo would be 52% off if I had it done on February 18, 2010. Marcus said his oldest customer was a woman who had a rose tattoo done on her 82^nd birthday and he gave her 82% off. My husband joked that he would wait till he was 100 to get a tattoo so it would be free. Hahaha!

On Valentine’s Day, right before my birthday, my dear husband wrote out a beautiful handmade card on red paper expressing his love and saying he was more than happy to give me my heart’s desire—my tattoo! Tucked inside was a fifty dollar bill. Hahaha! I scheduled it with Marcus and now I am the proud wearer of my own body art.

My Holy Spirit dove tattoo with infinity symbol represents unbroken fellowship with God.

Now my husband says, “I’d like to get a tattoo of a roaring lion with an eagle on his shoulder.” God sure changed his mind about tattoos! He seriously wants to get one done! I asked him where he would get it done and he laughed and said, “How about on my bald spot on my head?” Hahaha!

Living It Out

Today is Election Day. As glad as I am to see the campaign ads go in the shredder (the race for Congress here in New York State has been particularly nasty), there is election excitement in our household: it is our middle child’s first presidential election. I am pretty sure her vote will be different than mine in many categories, but that is okay: she is her own person, with her own views and she, like me, is trying to figure out this crazy, conflict-filled world we live in.

There are no easy answers when making tough decisions that may impact us for years to come. No one person is right on every issue (although there is plenty of self-righteousness to go around). But for the believer, there is a guide to making wise decisions in our everyday lives: the Bible. I am not talking politics in this paragraph or in the remainder of this piece; I am talking about ground-level living for the person who professes to believe in the Gospel message of Jesus Christ.

When you truly believe in something, you live it out. To live it out, your belief must be informed. For the Christian, thoughtful study of the Bible should inform thinking and actions. A troubling aspect of ministry life is being privy to seeing trouble in people’s lives and how they work it out. And many times, the trouble itself goes unrecognized, or the process of working it out does not have anything to do with the Truth found in the Bible. I have to be careful here--I need to confess that I have not always “spoken the truth in love” or forgiven my enemies or responded gently instead of harshly or [insert sin problem here].

When our son was a baby, he spoke early. One of his first phrases was, “Read it!” He loved books--in fact, when he was as young as four or five months old, if you showed him any of his board books, he got really excited.

If we would just “Read it!” we would solve a lot of problems in the Church. “Submit to one another” = humble yourself, and don’t think you are better than anyone else, because you are not. “Don’t commit adultery” = when you married, be faithful. If you are divorcing, be faithful. If you are single, be faithful. “Don’t steal” = don’t take what does not belong to you, including the innocence and peace of others. “Love one another as I have loved you” = well, that one explains itself.

As we read, we grow in belief and love, because the Holy Spirit exposes our need for Jesus and breathes life and forgiveness into our lives as we repent and seek to live out the Gospel. As we obey out of love (and all of us pretty much hate the word ‘obey’ because our inclination is to disobey), even on days like Election Day, our faith can be a witness to a crazy, conflict-filled world.

Tony C loves chicken, ice cream, gay people and Jesus...

My friends know me well. Well enough to know that sitting on the sidelines during the whole Chik-Fil-A fiasco a few months back was just not going to happen.

Good Lord people...there's nothing in the Bible that even says Jesus ate chicken! Wait. That's wasn't the issue was it? No the issue was/is once again the Political Correctness Police playing Rodney King (RIP) with our First Amendment rights.

So, the owner of Chik-Fil-A doesn't support gay marriage. That's his opinion, he owns it (the restaurant and his opinion) and gay people need to get their panti...their shorts out of a wad and deal! He didn't say gay people couldn't eat or even work there.

Hey. I sure as heck didn't stop eating Ben & Jerry's ice cream because they support gay marriage. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure Cherry Garcia is served in heaven. At least I'm hoping. Ben and Jerry have the right to believe what they want to believe, and that's a gift from God. Not just my favorite constitutional amendment.

Christians need to calm down though. Where's the love we're commanded to display in our actions and harness in our hearts when we're starting food fights with chicken sandwiches and waffle fries?

Man...those waffle fries are good...

Gays were boycotting and Christians are lining up in the drive thru, and  I'm okay with that. Just please soften the rhetoric a bit. Gay folks believe they have a right. That's cool with me. Doesn't mean you do though, but you can sure have that opinion. Christians believe homosexuality is immoral. While I personally agree with that position, I caution my brothers and sisters who are quick to throw out  1 Corinthians 6:9-11 as the banner statement of our faith on the subject.

Not because the Word isn't truth and irrefutable, but because that passage has a number of sins that prevent a person from inheriting the Kingdom of God. Not just homosexuality.

Let's see...sexually immorality would include adulterers and porn gazers, then there's idolaters (ever miss church to watch your favorite TV show?), thieves, greedy people (sorry Wall Street), drunkards, and...wait for it...slanderers! Ouch. Why do we (read Christians) seems to focus just on the sins we don't struggle with daily?

Not to mention...do you really see Jesus in this picture?

Ouch again. I'm really sorry many gay people will see their only true Savior in this light, and that's our fault Christians.

So, does Tony C going to Chik-Fil-A to show my support for those who oppose gay marriage? Absolutely not. I go because I support the God-given right of everyone to have an opinion of their own whether I agree with it or not. God will decide who's lived His way in the end. I just need to focus on Tony C, my own struggles to stay in His will, and being a beacon of His love.

Beacon. That word looks like bacon. Okay! Okay! And I really love that Spicy Chicken Club too...

Our Home...A Litmus Test for Love by Linda Maynard

I can be out in the world speaking about the Lord. I can teach in venues that I am invited to. I can share with brothers and sisters and love my neighbor as myself.

But, how am I acting in hiddeness, with the people that I profess to love and cherish the most?

Do I say things like…”that’s just the way I am”. Do I rely on their forgiveness and acceptance, while getting sloppy with living out my faith? Do I think, “Well they will always be there, no matter what?”

What would the proverbial fly on the wall see?

I was thinking of the late Henri Nouwen, who was a renowned speaker, theologian and author.

He was very much in demand and highly esteemed.

He spoke, all over the world, in places like the Menninger Foundation, University of Notre Dame, Yale and Harvard.

Yet, in his last 11 years, he was hidden in a place, called L’Arche in Toronto. Most of that time, was as a caretaker, of a young man, named Adam.

His decision to do this, was met with confusion and objections. How could this brilliant man “waste time” at L’Arche, when he could be out in the world ministering to many?

Adam had very limited physical abilities. He didn’t speak. Henri devoted his days to care for, bathe and shave and show Adam the raw love of Jesus. Yet Henri says, Adam taught him about Jesus, even likening him Adam to Jesus.

I thought about my life.

Living the life of Christ, amongst my family members, is hidden in a sense. I have to ask, does how I act a home, match the public persona that others see in me?

I had a rather comical incident happen, a few weeks ago. When I say comical, it was a situation in which I imagine God said “I gotcha!”

I was driving with my two young grandchildren. I approached a familiar intersection. I knew I needed to get into the left lane.

However, the line of traffic in that lane was unusually long. I assumed that there was a car turning left into a restaurant, causing the tie up. I proceed to go into the right lane, so I could get ahead of the blocking car.

As I went forward, I realized “Whoops! I was mistaken. Of course now I am in the wrong lane.

I thought…”not to worry” because the cars to my left were stopped, waiting for the light. I was sure a good soul would let me in. I stopped parallel to a car and looked over at the driver. He looked directly at me. I signaled that I would like to get in front of him. He then stared ahead, grasping the steering wheel in an almost defiant manner.

I was chagrined! My reasoning was “’well I would let him cut in”.

However, his eyes were set as a flint. The car behind me honked, but simultaneously the light changed. The traffic started to move and the person behind the “rude” driver let me in.

We inched forward and the traffic light turned red. He was stuck at the light. Inside I was thinking “see… where did that get you?”

Then, I saw the metal fish on the back of the car, indicating that he was a Christian.

I voiced my opinion out loud of his driving and character and added “and YOU are a Christian???”

Everyone needs honest people around them who can tell the truth in love. Sometimes though, you will say “Ouch!”

Young children and grandchildren can nicely fit the bill. They will offer their opinions, which are quite honest. They lack the maturity to know if they are being offensive though.

My grandchildren were quiet. When the light changed, I went on. I continued to mumble about the man’s faith. Then, up popped the voice of the Lord my granddaughter.

“Yes Granny, but you called that man a __________!”

I was stunned, embarrassed and convicted all at once.

I apologized to them, telling them I was so sorry that I acted that way. I told them how wrong I was. I repeated again how sorry I was.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be double minded. Thinking and acting one way with the outside world ,and another way, that is hidden from others.

Hidden…. that is from some…but not ever hidden from God.

I thank God, He is the kind of dad who, rather than shaming me, convicted me. I pictured Him scooching down, waiting with opened arms, as I ran to Him.

And THAT… is the best place to hide!