THE WONDER OF GOD'S CREATION

By Barbara Chadwick

“Dad would give us a quarter for being the first to spot a moose or a bear on our hour-long drives into Anchorage and you’d think we’d have tired of seeing yet another caribou or dall sheep along Alaska’s roadways. But then, as now, our wildlife inspired excitement, and even today we’ll still pull over to look and take a picture. My parents instilled in me that appreciation; we were not to take for granted the wonder of God’s creation.”  From Going Rogue: An American Life by Sarah Palin

Ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish of the sea inform you. Which of these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In His hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.  Job 12:7-10

Kenneth and I live in the Colorado mountains and every day we are inspired by the majesty, beauty and wonder that surrounds us. Creation itself is a witness to God.

When the moose nonchalantly walked across our yard, I hurriedly called to Keneth to look out the upstairs window to see him.  Another day the deer grazed on the bank across from the kitchen and Kenneth called my attention to it. On hikes in the Roosevelt National Forest behind our house we see flowers of every color and shape. Morning after morning the sunrise is glorious. It's as if God is saying, "Good Morning. I'm going to bless your day!"

 

We have lived here eleven years and we are still inspired and excited to see it all.

Photos by Kenneth Chadwick

A NEW KEY

by Barbara Chadwick

 

The Praise Team leader for the week said, “Can we change this song to a new key. This key is really not working.” The guitarist said, “These flats are just too awkward. Can we change the key?”

Remember the days in your life when, in exasperation, you told the Lord (in so many words), “Heavenly Father this key (this time in my life) is just not working. Can you change the key for me?”

It is written of Job “And Job died, an old man and full of days.” (Job 42:17)  Do you recall his story?  How he lost all his children, all his sheep, camels, oxen and donkeys then was stricken with painful boils from the soles of his feet to the top of his head?

Some of Job’s statements from that time:
“May the day of my birth perish…”  Job 3:3
“I have no peace, no quietness; I have no rest, but only turmoil.”  Job 3:26
“If only my anguish could be weighed and all my misery be placed on the scales! It would surely outweigh the sand of the seas.”  Job 6:2
“My days are swifter than a runner; they fly away without a glimpse of joy.”  Job 9:25

Apparently,  there were certainly many days when Job wanted to change the key and the tone of his days. But his focus was entirely on himself. We can certainly sympathize with those feelings.

Throughout the discourse with the friends that came to “console” him, Job speaks with great pride of his accomplishments, his obedience to God, his wisdom, his standing in the community, and how he helped the poor and defenseless. He says, Men listened to me expectantly, waiting in silence for my counsel…  They waited for me as for showers…I dwelt as a king among his troops...  

Job 29:21,23 & 25

But then finally, in chapter 38  the Lord answered Job: Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation....? While the morning stars sang together (In a perfect key I might add!) and all the angels shouted for joy...? Who endowed (your) heart with wisdom or gave understanding to (your) mind...?   Job 38:4, 7, & 36

The Lord shows us that in order to change keys we have to change our thought processes.

For instance, to change from the key of C# minor to C Major we have to arrange the notes mentally from four sharps to no sharps or flats. With much practice this process happens quickly.

So, to change the key for the days of our lives, we have to mentally change our focus.  Our focus has to be on God. Job finally said, Surely, I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know…My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore, I …repent in dust and ashes.  Job 42:3, 5-6

Our focus has to be on God. With much practice (prayer and reading God’s Word) that shift in focus from I/My to You, Lord will happen quickly.

Incidentally, The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the first.  Job 42:12 

The key – the focus of his days was radically changed.

WALK & TALK & SEE LIKE CHRIST

by Barbara Chadwick

 

 

Love God

Love Others

Connect With Our Community

 

This message was printed on the backs of the T shirts the staff wore for VBS (Vacation Bible School).

After VBS we went shopping downtown. Everywhere I was conscious of that message on my back. I felt that every response I made should reflect my love for Jesus.

When we passed someone sitting on the sidewalk with a cup I felt honor bound to offer money – whereas often in my haste I’d pass by without a thought.

In the shops I tried to think of words of blessing I could offer instead of trying to hurry through the transaction, not taking the time to fully look into the eyes of the clerk.

I intentionally smiled at people. Usually I feel so rushed that I hurry through – not that I’m rude, but I just don’t make the effort to connect.

As Jesus walked along He “saw” people. He had compassion on them.

Since I want my life to count for Christ I wonder why I don’t “intentionally” walk & talk & see like he did even when I’m not wearing a T shirt with a Christian message on it.

MAKE MY LIFE A SYMPHONY OF PRAISE

by Barbara Chadwick

 

 

My sister, Ruth, gave me this plaque. The poem is by B.J. Hoff. I wish I could write like that! But God gives to each of us the gifts He wants us to have in order to glorify His Name. I share this with you because it so expresses how I feel today.

I have a beautiful Yamaha grand piano but I don’t play it enough. Too many times I choose to do some inane thing instead of playing the music God put into my heart. My prayer echoes what Hoff has written here; “For now, Lord, and forever… Be my Music and make my life a symphony of praise.”

The Musician’s Prayer

By B. J. Hoff

 

You’ve given me the words, Lord…and the music…

A song of life that’s new and unrehearsed;

You have given me the joy that makes my heart sing,

Even though at times the tears come first…

You’ve taken all my yesterdays of discord,

A clash of cymbals, meaningless and vain,

Transposing all the noise into a love song that floods my soul with its refrain…

You’ve taken all the gifts I once thought mine, Lord

And changed the composition of their worth,

Reclaiming what was Yours from the beginning,

Returning them, transfigured by rebirth…

You’ve given me the theme for my existence,

And I will sing Your glory all my days…

For now, Lord, and forever…Be my Music and make my life a symphony of praise.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

shared by Barbara Chadwick

 

 

 

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

 

My son-in-law, Larry Wauson, sent this story to me. I love it because I, too, am at an age where I go into a room and forget why!  But I, too, know where I'm going. May God bless all the fathers today.

 

 

His New Suit
Billy Graham is now 92 years-old with Parkinson's disease.
In January, leaders in Charlotte , North Carolina , invited their favorite son, Billy Graham, to a luncheon in his honor.
Billy initially hesitated to accept the invitation because he struggles with Parkinson's disease. But the Charlotte leaders said, 'We don't expect a major address. Just come and let us honor you.' So he agreed.
After wonderful things were said about him, Dr. Graham stepped to the rostrum, looked at the crowd, and said, "I'm reminded today of Albert Einstein, the great physicist who this month has been honored by Time magazine as the Man of the Century. Einstein was once traveling from Princeton on a train when the conductor came down the aisle, punching the tickets of every passenger. When he came to Einstein, Einstein reached in his vest pocket. He couldn't find his ticket, so he reached in his trouser pockets. It wasn't there. He looked in his briefcase but couldn't find it. Then he looked in the seat beside him. He still couldn't find it. "The conductor said, 'Dr. Einstein, I know who you are. We all know who you are. I'm sure you bought a ticket. Don't worry about it.'" Einstein nodded appreciatively. The conductor continued down the aisle punching tickets. As he was ready to move to the next car, he turned around and saw the great physicist down on his hands and knees looking under his seat for his ticket. "The conductor rushed back and said, 'Dr. Einstein, Dr. Einstein, don't worry, I know who you are; no problem. You don't need a ticket. I'm sure you bought one.'
Einstein looked at him and said, "Young man, I too, know who I am. What I don't know is where I'm going."
Having said that Billy Graham continued, "See the suit I'm wearing? It's a brand new suit. My children and my grandchildren are telling me I've gotten a little slovenly in my old age. I used to be a bit more fastidious. So I went out and bought a new suit for this luncheon and one more occasion. You know what that occasion is? This is the suit in which I'll be buried. But when you hear I'm dead, I don't want you to immediately remember the suit I'm wearing. I want you to remember this:
I not only know who I am. I also know where I'm going." May your troubles be less, your blessings more, and may nothing but happiness, come through your door. "Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil - it has no point."
Amen & Peace My Friends
And may each of us have lived our lives so that when our ticket is punched we don't have to worry about where we are going.

ARE YOU LIVING IN BABYLON OR JERUSALEM?

by Barbara Chadwick

 

Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone would come after me he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?

Matthew 16:24-26

In the book, Idol Lies by Dee Brestin, the author asks, “What, if I lost it, would make life not worth living.” Wow, what an intense question. Your answer will bring you down to the basics of what makes up your life.

Our friend, Ron Welsh, had a magnificent bass voice. It was an incredible gift. One day he said to us, “If I lost my voice or the ability to sing I don’t think I could continue to live.” ís His whole life revolved around his voice. He died early, in his forties.

I spoke at a women’s retreat once where in a Q & A session one of the women said, “I’d give anything if I could just have my kids back at home.” Her life had been wrapped up in them. So here she was, with years ahead of her, going about every day weighed down with sadness because her children had grown up and left home to live their own lives. She felt that her life was no longer worth living.

Do you have a safe full of treasures? There’s a commercial about gold on TV that ends with, “What’s in your safe?” Indicating that if you don’t have gold in your safe you’re not safe in today’s world and you have no value.

So, are you living in Babylon or Jerusalem? Babylon is the world and Jerusalem is in the center of God’s will. We often think of being “in the world” as being involved in evil things. But if we’re not living to please God then we’re “in the world.”

Are you living in Babylon?

            Are you burdened about many things?
            Are there things or activities in your life you wish you could let go of?
           Do you worry about where you’ll live tomorrow or how you’ll get by next year?
           What about whether you’ll measure up? (- to what you’re not sure – some nebulous
           level or indefinable goal - or someone else’s definition of success)

You’re living in Jerusalem when:

          You’re trusting God for His promise to be with you to the end of the age
          You believe God can give you the strength to give up unhealthy activities
          You are receiving joy and inspiration from reading God’s word daily
          You gain encouragement from meeting with fellow believers on a regular basis

You could lose all your worldly goods and treasures, all your talents and gifts, all those who are special to you, and still have the “peace that passes understanding” because you have put your faith and trust in Jesus as your Savior and you know that He walks beside you and that He will work out His plan for your life.

Let your joy be complete by living in Jerusalem.

 

WHAT IS YOUR PURPOSE?

by Barbara Chadwick

 

  

To live with a purpose is to live with hope!

Why were you created?  Why are you here?

When God chooses a person for his purposes, all eternity is affected and molded because of this decision.

I think of the pastor I had when I was a child. God used his gift of story-telling to touch the hearts of so many children. Children who grew up and went to the mission field or became pastors and leaders.

God called our son Kerry to be a minister. When I think of all the people he and his wife, Deanna, have helped financially, encouraged, shared their home with, young people they taught, older people they shared time with, the countless meals they’ve hosted in their home; I am staggered by the sheer numbers of lives they have touched with God’s love through their hospitality.

In Henry Blackaby’s book, Created to Be God’s Friend: How God Shapes Those He Loves, he shows

how God shapes those He loves into useful, joyful co-workers as they hear and respond to His call in
everyday life.

You may not be a minister but every time you respond to God’s nudge to touch someone’s life with

kindness, mercy and with love you can know that God is working in that person’s life – and you can also know that God is at work in your own life.

I remember one time that I was very depressed. The doctor said, “I want you to go and do something

for somebody. Volunteer in a hospital or whatever you can find to do.”  Sure enough, when I helped

others and saw that it blessed their lives I was fulfilled and the result was joy in my heart.

The following scriptures show a worthy purpose for the Christian life:

Romans 12:13  Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

1Timothy 5:10  … is well known for her good deeds, such as bringing up children, showing

 hospitality, washing the feet of the saints, helping those in trouble and devoting herself to all kinds

of good deeds.

3 John 5-8  John writes to Gaius: Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the

brothers, even though they are strangers to you. They have told the church about your love...
We ought therefore to show hospitality to such men so that we may work together for the truth.

To live with a purpose is to live with hope!