Bridge Builders

How can something so simple be so important?   My father deemed it a requirement to live in his house.   Make your bed and to his specifications.   He even bounced a quarter off the bed to make sure it was done right. Little did I know he was teaching a lesson?   The first task of the day was to make my bed.   Get that done and other task will follow.   Maybe, my day would entail more significant task than making a bed but if I completed the smallest task I would be more likely to accept the challenge of larger assignments. I made my bed according to how I had been instructed and to the best of my ability.   By insisting that I make my bed my father taught me that if I did the simple, small things well I would be better prepared to go out and make a difference in the world.   Matthew 28:19 19  Go therefore [ a ]  and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spi...

Methodist Hospital at Stone Oak is expanding.  Construction workers start their day before the sun comes up by hearing from the project manager.  The project manager receives their marching orders from the general contractor.  The owner hired the general contractor to direct the project and keep the building under budget.  Each day, the construction workers complete the assignment given to them in the morning. Many skills are required to complete the project.  It runs smoother when each person does what they do best, on time and with the best of their ability.  The expansion began last year and is not yet complete but it’s beginning to look more like the exterior elevation plan mounted in the hospital lobby.  As long as the workers keep showing up, listening to the project manager and dispersing to do their assigned job, the addition to Methodist Hospital will be up and functional this summer. Matthew 28:19-20 19  Therefore go and make dis...

I had never seen this poem in its entirety until this weekend.  It was recited by memory by one of the attendees at a conference.  All this time I had assumed this poem spoke of wisdom and the peace in knowing what should concern me and what should not.  When anxiety would overshadow me, well-meaning friends would recite the first two verses to remind me about the things I could not change so stop worrying.  There is a nod to serenity and wisdom in the poem but most importantly, it’s about contentment. Philippians 4:11-13 11  Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content:  12  I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.  13  I can do all things through Christ [ a ]  who strengthens me. Live one day at a time, one moment at a time and accept what life brings....

NO Scripture today, just a thought. The anti-vaccine rate is up in Texas due to the increasing number of parents that utilize the vaccine exemption clause.  Their decision not to vaccinate is attributed to the debunked belief that vaccines cause autism.  When vaccine rates decline, the likelihood of childhood diseases making its way back into the community increases exponentially.  This phenomenon is based on what is called herd immunity.  Herd immunity is a form of indirect protection from infectious disease that occurs when a large percentage of a population has become   immune   to an infection through immunization, thereby providing a measure of protection for individuals who are not immune .  Non-immune people are infants not old enough for vaccines, children with cancer on chemotherapy, people born without an immune system and the elderly.  If the majority of people around them are not immunized then they are vulnerable to deadly inf...

     I didn’t sleep at all last night.   Stretching and floor exercises to relax did not work.   Drinking hot tea with a heating pad on my neck and shoulders was of no use.   Sad to say, reading my lesson for Sunday not for understanding but using the scripture as a sleep aid was ineffective with good reason.   Many nights we lie down thinking about the news of the day, making plans for the following day, rehashing old conversations and re-configuring responses already uttered then spend the night fretting about not being able to sleep.   We try in earnest to put ourselves to sleep. Psalm 127:2 For so He give His beloved sleep. God gives His beloved. Sleep.  How will He do it for us?  When we consider our day and are content with what God has given.  When we understand tomorrow is not promised and it will take care of itself.  When we can be grateful for the quietness and the time of refreshment He provides....

1 John 1:9 9  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.   Can you see it?  There on the edge, a small hint of mold.  It is damaged goods!  The revelation that this slice of bread was not fit for eating came to me after I had been using slices from this loaf for two days.  Rushing to make toast each morning, I had been reaching into the bread box grabbing a slice and throwing it into the toaster without looking.  I had not examined the bread.  I just assumed it was good.  This particular day, I was in no particular hurry and finally noticed the bread was defective.  This scenario occurred a few months ago.  I took the prerequisite photo shot and yet I have not been able to write a post about my experience.  I could not write until now. I am damaged goods.  There I said it!  As believers, we have an intellectual underst...

We are still reaping what Brenda left behind.    She lived a life of service, giving all she had with what little she had.   Her finances were precarious at times and her bills overwhelming yet here we are five months after her passing enjoying dinner together paid for by Brenda McDonald.   Her works followed her, not just here on earth but they are already there in heaven.   Brenda got PAID!   She is at rest but her legacy is still at work. Revelation 14:13 13  And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them. What are you leaving behind?   Will anyone notice your legacy?   It depends on what you are doing now.   Serve instead of being served.   Love the unlovable.   Work with the hard to work with person.   Notice those who are treated as though invisibl...