We All Leave Our Mark.

Very few of us have not been touched by the life of Kenny Clark. What a shock it was to awaken to the news that he was no longer on this earth but had gone to meet his Heavenly Father. And, suddenly, it seems the whole town has come to a halt. Oh, people are going about their business; many as usual, but there is a certain quietness in the town. You can see it in the faces of people you come in ...contact with. You can hear the whispers as people tell one another about this devastating loss. Even the computer postings have backed off other than to comment on what a great man he was; what a loss to the community; what a shock to his family, etc.

All of this has made me wonder what kind of a mark I would leave on our community. Would people be shocked at my passing? Would they talk among themselves about what a great person I was and how my community will miss me? Will they remember the times I helped other people in need? Would they talk about what a fun person I was to be around? Would they remember good things and talk about them for a time or would my passing be noted for a day and then written off as just another person gone from this earth?

Every person who walks this earth touches someone in some way at some time. Those of us who knew Kenny were changed in some way. Perhaps we were changed just because he spoke to us and ask about our family. Perhaps we were changed because he offered us a job. Perhaps we were changed because we heard him play his drums in church. Some of us will be changed because of the times he helped us when there was a need.

Will you be remembered in a good way just as Kenny was? What are you doing to make your mark on the people you come in contact with each day? You are influencing someone every day. You may never know it; you may never hear it while you are on this earth but you are leaving your mark.

What will people say about you when you are gone?

“It is God himself who has made us what we are and given us new lives from Christ Jesus; and long ages ago he planned that we should spend these lives in helping others.” Ephesians 2:10 TLB

” How do you know what is going to happen tomorrow? For the length of your lives is as uncertain as the morning fog—now you see it; soon it is gone.” James 4:14 TLB

Happy Fathers Day !

My daddy was a pretty quiet man but he had a very dry sense of humor. Even though he was soft spoken, there was never any doubt about what he expected of me. There were times in my teen years that I thought he was too strict. However, after I became a parent, I understood.

At 34, he was an older dad when I was born. And, there was no doubt that I was a Daddy’s Girl. Although he worked long hours..., he was never too tired to spend time with me. He was a good man; a Christian man and although he has been gone since 1984, I can still hear his voice in my head on occasion and most often, it is in an affirmative way.

I married a man much like my daddy although my husband’s humor was a bit more than dry. It was always a laugh a minute at in our home when he was around. Our two daughters were very fortunate to have such a wonderful man in their lives growing up. And, I know they honor and respect him today.

Our daughters married wonderful Christian men and we love them as though they are our own sons. They love our daughters and have brought up our grandchildren to love the Lord.

We are fortunate to have two grandsons-in-law who are not fathers yet but someday they will be. They were both brought up in Christian homes and I know they will continue to love our granddaughters and will lead their children in the right paths.

Our two grandsons have been brought up in the fear and admonition of the Lord and I have no fear whatsoever that they also will be wonderful fathers someday.

God has blessed me with wonderful men in my life and I give Him thanks for that.

"Fathers, don’t exasperate your children by coming down hard on them. Take them by the hand and lead them in the way of the Master." Ephesians 6:4 MSG

The Ice Cream Social

Here I am inside today bemoaning the fact that the Ice Cream Social is taking place on the public square and I’m home nursing a terrible cold. And, unless I want to go around carrying a box of Kleenex with me, my trip to this event will probably not take place.

The Ice Cream Social is a great event not only for merchandising the wears of the merchants and local people, but it’s the best place to see people you only see once a year or maybe once every five or ten years. People enjoy standing around visiting or setting in lawn chairs they have brought for the occasion.  And, if the weather cooperates, that makes it so much better.

I recall when I was growing up, Saturday night was the time for visiting on the square. The merchants always kept their stores open and usually enjoyed a pretty hefty business.  Of course, when I was growing up, there wasn’t a highway running right through the middle of town so the kids could run all over the shaded, circular, park like area.  We would climb over the benches and chase each other until our faces were beet red and we would fall over on the grass to cool off. Parents would set around visiting in the park or stroll around the square, stopping occasionally to window shop or go inside to see what new merchandise was on display. In the early years, there was a bandstand, as I recall, and there was always band music being played by members of the school band or occasionally, an older person who was still young at heart and enjoyed playing their instrument of choice.

I have often wondered if the generations that have come on after mine could be entertained as easily. Have we grown so accustomed to being entertained by the “bloob tube” or the internet that we have forgotten how to visit with our neighbors?  Are our activities so organized for us that we run ourselves crazy with one parent carting one kid to soccer while the other takes the other child to dance?  Is there no time spent together as a family just enjoying each other without having our cellphones set on ready and certainly within arm’s reach? Do we even know our neighbors or the merchants in town? Do we even care to know them?

 “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”Mark 12:30-31 NIV

Happy birthday, Cheryl !

It was early on a Sunday morning when my mother answered the telephone.

“So what do John and Jo Ann have?” asked the voice on the other end.

“What do you mean ‘what do they have’?“ inquired my mother.

“Well, they’ve been at the hospital all night. Surely they have something by now,” came the voice on the other end.

So, when my petite mother walked into the waiting room, she was loaded for bear!

“Why didn’t you let me know you all were up here?” she said, looking John straight in the eye.

Before he could answer, there was a cry from down the hall.  That beautiful little girl had arrived and our world would never be the same.

Cheryl, your dad and I couldn’t ask for a more wonderful daughter. You have made life for us so interesting and fulfilling from the minute we brought you home until now. Thank you for all of the wonderful memories.  And, thank you for finding the perfect soul mate and giving us two of the best grandsons in the world!

We love you, dear daughter, and your dad and I hope your birthday is the very best yet!

 

Are You A People Pleaser?

Are you a people pleaser?  Do you go out of your way to please everyone and then complain when they don’t appreciate it?  Do you worry about what people think about you?  Are you afraid they will no longer like you if you don’t go above and beyond to help them?

A lot of people have a fear of rejection.  Some will do anything to get the approval of others even if it means wearing themselves out and neglecting their own families or their own needs in the process.
When will we learn that we can’t please everyone?  Even Jesus couldn’t please the people who knew him best. He wasn’t accepted in his own hometown
.
"Jesus told them, 'A prophet has little honor in his hometown, among his relatives, on the streets he played in as a child.' Jesus wasn’t able to do much of anything there—he laid hands on a few sick people and healed them, that’s all. He couldn’t get over their stubbornness. He left and made a circuit of the other villages, teaching."  Mark 6:4-6 The Message

I’m sure Jesus wasn’t trying to please people for He only wanted to please His Heavenly Father. It seemed no matter what He did; how many people He healed, the people could not be pleased. Maybe we should quit trying to please everyone else and just do the will of our Heavenly Father. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to help those in need. But, sometimes when we think we are helping others, we are only allowing them to be more dependent.

It’s pretty easy to please our Heavenly Father. It’s much easier than it is to please other people. And, after all, being pleasing to Him is all that really matters when this life is over.

“And now just as you trusted Christ to save you, trust him, too, for each day’s problems; live in vital union with him.   Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him. See that you go on growing in the Lord, and become strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with joy and thanksgiving for all he has done.” Colossians 2:6-7 TLB