A Carol for Children - By Ogden Nash

God rest you merry, Innocents,

Let nothing you dismay,

Let nothing wound an eager heart

Upon this Christmas day.

 

Yours be the genial holly wreaths,

The stockings and the tree;

An aged world to you bequeaths

Its own forgotten glee.

 

Soon, soon enough come crueler gifts,

The anger and the tears;

Between you now there sparsely drifts

A handful yet of years.

 

Oh, dimly, dimly glows the star

Through the electric throng;

The bidding in temple and bazaar

Drowns out the silver song.

 

The ancient altars smoke afresh,

The ancient idols stir;

Faint in the reek of burning flesh

Sink frankincense and myrrh.

 

Gaspa, Balthazar, Melchior!

Where are your offerings now?

What greetings to the Prince of War,

His darkly branded brow?

 

Two ultimate laws alone we know,

The ledger and the sword -

So far away, so long ago

We lost the infant Lord.

 

Only the children clasp His hand;

His voice speaks low to them,

And still for them the shining band

Wings over Bethlehem.

 

God rest you merry, Innocents,

While Innocence endures.

A sweeter Christmas than we to ours

May you bequeath to yours.

Transformers

Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your Mind…

Ezekiel 36:26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

God is transforming each of us as our minds are renewed by the Word of God and we walk in the Spirit. Getting a NEW HEART is a WONDERFUL THING!!!!!!!

ADAMIC NATURE		NEW HEART NATURE
FEAR	-------------------------------------à	FAITH
CHAOS	-------------------------------------à	ORDER
SORROW	-------------------------------------à	JOY
ANXIETY	-------------------------------------à	PEACEFUL
HATRED	-------------------------------------à	LOVE
IRRITATION	-------------------------------------à	LONGSUFFERING
HARSHNESS	-------------------------------------à	GENTLENESS
AMILESSNESS	-------------------------------------à	PURPOSE
WORRY	-------------------------------------à	ASSURANCE
PESSIMISTIC	-------------------------------------à	OPTOMISTIC
PERFORMANCE	-------------------------------------à	GRACE
BROKEN RELATIONSHIPS	-------------------------------------à	UNITY
WEAKNESS	-------------------------------------à	STRENGTH
LACK	-------------------------------------à	ABUNDANCE
SICKNESS	-------------------------------------à	HEALTH
FAILURE	-------------------------------------à	OVERCOMER
SERVANT/SLAVE	-------------------------------------à	FREEDOM
DOMINATED BY FLESH	-------------------------------------à	DOMINION POWER
SELF CENTERED	-------------------------------------à	OTHERS FOCUSED
CRITICAL	-------------------------------------à	AFFIRMING
PROUD	-------------------------------------à	HUMBLE
LACKING IN CONFIDENCE	-------------------------------------à	SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY
WEARY	-------------------------------------à	ENERGIZED
LIMITED	-------------------------------------à	CREATIVE
DOUBT	-------------------------------------à	BELIEF
CONFUSION	-------------------------------------à	UNDERSTANDING
FOOLISH	-------------------------------------à	WISDOM
FOLLOWER	-------------------------------------à	LEADER
HEAVYNESS	-------------------------------------à	PRAISE
TIMID	-------------------------------------à	POWERFUL
FAILURE	-------------------------------------à	SUCCESSFUL
WANDERING	-------------------------------------à	SPIRIT LEAD
HURT AND OFFENDED	-------------------------------------à	FORGIVING AND RELEASING
TAKER	-------------------------------------à	GIVER
SILENT	-------------------------------------à	A VOICE
PROBLEM FOCUSED	-------------------------------------à	POSSIBLITY FOCUSED
SEPARATION FROM GOD	-------------------------------------à	RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD

 

 

Thanksgiving 2010

Today I am thankful for:

1.       HOPE – ‘For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope for a living dog is better than a dead lion’ Ecc 9:4 – I have been given another day to live.  I looked up some of the word in the Hebrew.  The word ‘living’ can be interpreted literally or figuratively.  Another meaning for ‘living’ in the Hebrew is ‘Merry’ anyway, I am glad I have Hope. 

2.       FAITH – I am glad that my reality is not defined by my circumstances. ‘Faith is the substance of things Hoped for, the evidence of things not seen’ BY Faith I KNOW that my future will be WONDERFUL and that I can enjoy TODAY even if all my circumstances are not perfect and I am not perfect.  I don’t have to wait until I have conquered everyone of my weaknesses to REJOICE because my FAITH says God is working on me and changing me into what He wants me to be.

3.       LOVE – Even though God knows me so well, He Loves me and what he made me to be. He has so much Patience with me and it is His pleasure to shower me with His Favor.  I have done nothing to deserve it and I do not have to do a little dance and perform for Him to smile upon me.

4.       GRACE – I have been redeemed from Sin by His GRACE, but it doesn’t stop there. Each day I live I am blessed by His Grace, my family is blessed by his Grace. I humbly receive it knowing that my works are not why I receive it.

 

 

Today I am thankful for:

1.   After 8 years, my doctor told me that my pituitary gland as regained some functions and that my adrenaline gland is functioning normally and my thyroid is functioning normally.  So, I no longer need to take Prednisone and Synthroid Daily.  I know that God is healing me.  To God be the glory! Now I am believing for my pancreas to be healed.

2.   Chelsea received acceptance letters from Hanover and IU yesterday.  I know she will have many other options.  She has decided that she wants to be a Physical Therapist.  I think that will fit her style great!

3.   Debbie composed a beautiful piece on the piano last weekend.  It is has a very relaxing melody and a natural soothing effect.

4.   I love the cool fall weather.  Clouds, mist, fresh air remind me of Washington State.

5.   My cousin Norm who lives in Colorado Springs was just ahead of a huge pileup on I25 between Denver and The Springs.  Thank the Lord he was not caught in that.  He drives between The Springs and Denver every day.

 

JUST FORGET ABOUT IT!

Brethren I count not myself to have apprehended but this one thing I do forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth unto those things which are before – Phil 3:13

For I know the plans I have for you.  Declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11  NIV

 

The enemy knows my past and wants me to focus on my past.  The GREAT news is that The Lord know my FUTURE and I am instructed to forget those things that are behind me and focus on the future. 

I like the saying “There is nothing I can do to create a new past; but I can start today and create a new future”

The greatest gift I am given is the blood of Jesus which will cover my past failures like they never happened.  Every time the enemy throws the past in my face, I must remind him and myself that it is under the Blood of Jesus. 

Jesus has already taken care of all my weakness and failures.  When I look at the Bible I see so many areas where I fall short.  Reading the Word is like a mirror and sometimes I don’t like what I see, but then I realize that  the Word’s purpose is to lead me to the cross! At the cross all of my shortcomings, failures, and weakness are completely covered, forgiven, atoned, justified and forgotten!

As a child of God I declare that the work of Calvary is a reality in my life TODAY!  I release freedom from condemnation TODAY! I release the JOY of my salvation TODAY! I curse every lying condemnation the enemy attempts to burden me with TODAY.  My past, present and future are in the hands of a Loving God!

 

 

check out this interesting artwork

http://www.mcnaughtonart.com/artwork/view_zoom/?artpiece_id=379

 

http://www.mcnaughtonart.com/artwork/view_zoom/?artpiece_id=353

 

 

 

 

"Melody in F" (The Prodigal Son)

In memory of my Uncle Dave Wiens.  I loved hearing him quote this. He was FANTASTIC!

 

Feeling footloose and frisky, a feather-brained fellow forced his fond father to fork over the farthings, flew far to foreign fields, and frittered his fortune feasting fabulously with faithless friends. Fleeced by his fellows in folly and facing famine, he found himself a feed flinger in a filthy farm yard. Fairly famishing, he fain would have filled his frame with foraged food from fodder fragments. "Phooey, my father's flunkies fare far finer," the frazzled fugitive fumbled, frankly facing fact. Frustrated by failure and filled with foreboding, he fled forthwith to his family. Falling at his father's feet, he forlornly fumbled, "Father, I've flunked and fruitlessly forfeited family fellowship favor." The farsighted father, forestalling further flinching, frantically flagged the flunkies to fetch a fatling from the flock and fix a feast. The fugitive's faultfinding brother frowned on fickle forgiveness of former folderol. But the faithful father figured, "Filial fidelity is fine, but the fugitive is found! What forbids fervent festivity? Let the flags be unfurled! Let fanfares flare!"

 

First Fruit of the Garden

 

We had the whole family out working in the garden last night.  I picked a couple young zuchinni and an onion and took them home and sliced them up and boiled them.  Delicious! Everything is growing well, that includes the crab grass!  It is a lot of work to stay on top of the weeds, but I think it is good for us to stay close to our food.  The kids are learning that it takes work to make a great garden.

 

Dog Counseling

This gave me a little chuckle this morning.  Our friends have a Yellow Lab that recently bit a young girl on the eye.  This isn’t the first person this dog has bitten.  They offered to put the dog down, but the victims family didn’t want them to do that.  So they are sending the Lab to a Dog Counselor and are putting him on Prozac.

 

COUNSELOR: “Why did you bite the little girl in the eye?”

 

DOG:.  “There were nine of us puppies, but mom only had 8 teats, so I have always felt rejected because the other puppies wouldn’t let me in to suckle,  so therefore, I bit the girl in the eye.” 

 

COUNSELOR: “Now take a deep breath and let it go because NOW you get all the Dog Chow you want and you are huge”

 

DOG( thinking to himself and wagging his tail): “I am offended! You just called me huge!  Just wait until I see a skinny jogger come running by.  They are MINE”

 

COUNSELOR: “Remember to take this pretty little pill everyday”

 

DOG: “Hey this doesn’t taste like Beggin Strips! Now I’m Really Mad”

 

 

 

KEYS

Last Sunday Morning our family was amused during church by the cutest little Pakistani girl. She is probably 2 years old and just full of curiosity and wonder. She wandered out of her seat and went a couple rows and found a seat where someone had laid their ring full of keys on the seat. She picked them up and was looking at them, pushing buttons (I was waiting for the car alarm to go off), she chewed on a little plastic flower attached to the ring, rattled them and just generally had a great time with the keys. The thought struck me, she has the keys, but she had no idea how to use them or the power they represent. This little two year old could not even open the door let alone climb into the SUV, start it up and drive home. To her the keys were a play thing.

How many of us are just playing around with the keys to spiritual success in our lives. We ALL have heard enough Word and enough Teaching that if we applied the knowledge we already have, our lives would begin to change instantly. But we want to hold the keys up and look at how shiny they are and how they rattle and maybe chew on them a little. It is time we start using the keys that God gave us. We don’t need to look for more teaching and another self-help book. We need to start exercising our Faith, Start Speaking the Word of God into our lives and the lives of the People around us. We need to start using the Keys of Prayer and Fasting and Praying in the Spirit. We must put the Key of Submission to God into the ignition and turn it. We are not going to go where we want to go until we stop playing with the Keys and start using the Keys as they were designed to be used.

Charity doesn't like Bubblegum

My youngest daughter, Charity, is now a spunky 13. She has always despised the smell of bubblegum. If she is riding in the car and someone puts a piece of Bubblegum in their mouth, you would think someone farted (of course that would never happen in our family). Charity immediately has her nose out the window getting some fresh air. I know, that doesn’t seem normal for kids these days, but she is definitely her own person.

As I was thinking about this the other day, a parallel came to mind. Too often we treat God as the bubblegum machine and our praise as the nickel to GET something from Him.

Think about the two Mary’s “At dawn on the first day, Mary Magdalene and another woman named Mary went to look at the tomb…” Matthew 28:1. They climbed the hill without expectations from Jesus because he was already dead. They did it because they were true disciples and loved Jesus. They wanted to honor Him and treat His body properly. They were going to the tomb to give PERIOD.

When was the last time you lavished your praise on the Lord without a thought about your needs or any expectations about receiving something from Jesus? Just because you LOVED Him PERIOD. You see, Charity, mine or the love kind, is not motivated by bubblegum. Love does not look at God as its Sugar Daddy who give it whatever it wants. Oh we are all blessed by God, but not because we have Praised and Worshipped Him, but because He loves us so much and takes great pleasure in lavishing His love on us! I John 3:1 NIV.

I want to lavish my praise and worship on the Lord out of a pure motivation. Because I am His disciple, because I Love Him and because I am devoted to Him. Not because I like bubblegum so much. God has greater things planned for us than we have ever imagined! Our bubblegum mentality is so short sighted and small.

Something wonderful does happen when our praise and worship is properly motivated. We Change! Our perspective is lifted and we see life differently. We start walking in authority and favor and chains are broken and we begin to live in the Liberty of the Spirit!

Thought for Today

 

You’ll never be what you ought to be, unless you’re doing what you ought to do.

Like Water

 

 

Like frozen water

Pain makes it harder to flow

While underneath the water is moving

Stiffness is visible

 

Mudflows move slowly

Too much stuff slows you down

To move quick and smooth

Get Clean and Clear

 

Dams control Water

Only a trickle until it busts

Clear the heart Channel

Let the Love escape

 

Heat makes water rise

Vapors ascend to the sky

Don’t despise the Kiln of Trials

You end up in heaven

 

Phil Yadon

March 18, 2010

 

Three Heroes

Charlie Moses Yadon, Grace (Yadon) Wiens, Charles Haskell Yadon. These are some of the greatest people I have ever known. I love them and miss Dad and Uncle Haskell. I still love talking with my Aunt Grace on the phone. Their words and lives echo in my heart daily. I hope to be a Man of God that they would be proud of. They look so much alike with those cute mouths and chins.

Surrender Your Journey to God

 

“Stop rehearsing your past and give it to the Lord. He's the wall-toppling, communication-restoring, esteem-building healer of broken hearts and relationships. If you let Him, He will help you to live and love again.”  --  Bob Gass

Powerful Stuff!

'There is tremendous relief in knowing that God's love for me is based at every point on prior knowledge of the worst in me. No discovery can disillusion Him in the way I'm often so disillusioned about myself, or quench His determination to bless me. There is great cause for humility in the thought that He sees all the twisted things about me that others don't see. Indeed, He sees more corruption in me than I see in myself. Yet He wants to be my friend, and desires to be my friend, and has given His son to die for me in order for me to realize this purpose.'

 

JI Packer “Knowing God”

Some Good Word to Live by

'Let all those who… put their trust in You rejoice… because You… defend them; let those also who love Your name… be in high spirits' (Psalm 5:11 AMP)

'The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms; He will thrust out the enemy from before you… ' (Deuteronomy 33:27 NKJV)

'The Lord is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him' (Nahum 1:7 KJV)

'Fear not… for I am with you… I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes, I will help you… I will hold you up… with My [victorious] right hand… ' (Isaiah 41:10 AMP)

'You protect them by your presence from what people plan against them. You shelter them from evil' (Psalm 31:20 NCV)

'Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever' (Psalm 23:6 NLT)

'… The Lord stood at my side and gave me strength… The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom… ' (2 Timothy 4:17-18 NIV)

'Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you' (Psalm 9:10 NIV)

'This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness' (Lamentations 3:21-23 NKJV)

'I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety' (Psalm 4:8 NIV).

'Because you have made the Lord… your dwelling place, no evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; for He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways' (Psalm 91:9-11 NKJV)

'The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them' (Psalm 34:7 NIV)

'… I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed' (Psalm 57:1 NIV)

'The Lord is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit' (Psalm 34:18 NIV)

'… the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer… ' (1 Peter 3:12 NIV)

'He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me… he rescued me because he delighted in me' (Psalm 18:16-19 NIV)

'Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light' (Micah 7:8 NIV)

'You will have courage because you will have hope. You will take your time, and rest in safety. You will lie down unafraid and many will look to you for help' (Job 11:18-19 TLB)

'Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us' (Ephesians 3:20 NIV).

A New Day - A New Life

As I was driving into work this morning God filled the eastern sky with a fiery display of His Glory as His sun crested above the horizon.  Clouds for hundreds of miles were ignited into blazing red and orange flames. My thought was, may the Spirit of God crest above the horizon in our lives and ignite each of our worlds with beautiful colors. “He must increase, but I must decrease”.

If life seems dull gray, wake up, eat breakfast, go to work, eat dinner, and watch TV, plop in bed, wake up and repeat…then a sunrise is called for. Let the Spirit of God bring new color and perspective to your life TODAY.    The way to get rid of darkness is not by removing it by the bucketful, but by opening the curtains and letting the light in.  Let’s open our hearts today and let a magnificent sunrise of the Spirit of God take place.

 

 

New Year's Wish by Norm Rutzen

My Cousin Norm Rutzen sent me this text today:

“While sliding down the banister of this new year. May never the splinters point the wrong direction!”

Ouch and Amen to that! Thanks Norm!

That reminds me of a little story:

Last summer my youngest son, Chase, spent a week at Camp Allendale in southern Indiana. On the second day of camp he slide down a split rail fence and got a splinter in his butt. He went to the camp nurse, but she couldn’t see anything and gave him some Tylenol. He went back to the nurse everyday for more Tylenol. (we didn’t know about this until he got home). The next Sunday after he got home I was putting him to bed and picked him up and threw him on the bed. He winced in pain. To make a long story short, He ended up having surgery under general anesthesia to remove a 5” splinter. Now he has an awesome 6” scar that he can’t show to anyone.