Sunday's Coming

Good morning,

We are very happy in our new location. It's so peaceful and much quieter here. Almost daily, God gives me an opportunity to chat with Louie, the owner. He may only be one person, but he is valuable to God.

Thankfully, it didn't fall on our RV, but it did take out a portion of the top strand of wire on Louie's fence.  The tree cutting crew repaired the fence.

As I deal with health issues, the following from David Jeremiah spoke to my heart this morning. I hope it will be an encouragement to you, as well.

Worshiping in the Darkness
I will praise You with my whole heart; before the gods I will sing praises to You. - Psalm 138:1
Recommended Reading
Job 42:1-6
The nineteenth-century South African pastor and writer, Andrew Murray, was feeling unwell one day when a woman came seeking his advice about a difficult situation in which she was involved. Unable to see the woman in person, he wrote down a few paragraphs on paper for his housekeeper to give to the woman. The last line he wrote was a summary for her to believe: "I am here (1) by God's appointment, (2) in His keeping, (3) under His training, (4) for His time."
In short, Andrew Murray gave his visitor four reasons for worshiping God even in times of trouble. If we are where we are by God's appointment, in His keeping, under His training, for His time, what could we possibly have to worry about? Those four points are usually what we think when things are going well, when we really feel like worshiping God. But if they are true all the time, even when things are hard, why wouldn't we worship God in those times as well? We agree with Job: "Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?" (Job 2:10) 
We don't worship God because things are good or otherwise. We worship Him because of His sovereign oversight and care for our life. 

Never doubt in the dark what God told you in the light. - V. Raymond Edman 

I read in Isaiah 46:4 this week and I really like this verse ... the most obvious reason being that my hair is almost solid silver now.  Second reason: God is good and I know He is carrying me.

Isaiah 46:3-4New King James Version (NKJV)

3 “Listen to Me, O house of Jacob,
And all the remnant of the house of Israel,
Who have been upheld by Me from birth,
Who have been carried from the womb:
4 Even to your old age, I am He,
And even to gray hairs I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you.

Have a great day, love you, pass it on,

Don

Sunday's Coming

Good Morning,

Thank you for your prayers, e-mails and calls; you all help us so much. We are settling in at this new, small RV park more each day. I continue to visit daily with our manager here in the park. He seems to like me, for some reason, and I get to tell him of my Jesus. Yesterday he and the maintenance man were washing our rig and we started talking about doing good things and heaven. I told him that grace was the only way to heaven and he agreed that Jesus Christ is the only way.
We pray God uses us to encourage this nice man in his walk with the Lord.

Morning in Magnolia.
Oh magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt His name together.

I was reading this morning and read the following:

WHAT’S A PROVERB?
Little Ruby was saying her bedtime prayers. “Dear God,” she prayed, “please help bad people to be good and good people to be nice.” Whether Ruby knew it or not, she provided a simple way of describing what the book of Proverbs is: “a guidebook for living a life that pleases God.”
Over the years, various cultures and societies have established different criteria to describe whether or not one is “successful.” Many have put “wealth” at the top of the list. And money, to some degree, is important and necessary if one is to have the basic necessities of life. Others would speak of power, prestige and one’s position in society as being critical. Those words express the core values of individuals who want to be recognized for what they have accomplished on the world’s stage in politics, the military or banking and finance. No doubt some want to be remembered for doing some “thing” that no one else has done - like discovering a medicine that extends life or setting a record in a particular sport, inventing a product or procedure that makes life better or is useful, valuable or delightful.But those whose lives are guided by the lessons that we find in The Proverbs are those who fear God and allow Him to guide them, guard them and give them His gifts.We often talk about hindsight, sometimes we wish we had foresight, but Solomon’s Proverbs give us insight to make decisions based on God’s laws. Proverbs provides the believer with God’s wisdom that is underwritten by God’s power that we may live godly lives.
Prayer: Grant us willful hearts, Lord, to obey Your laws. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Scripture for Today: Proverbs 1:1 Begins with: "The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:" and ends with verse 33 "but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.”

We want to thank you for your support through your prayers, calls, e-mails and gifts.

Have a great day, love you, pass it on.
Don

Sunday's Coming

Good Morning,

Thank you for your prayers, e-mails and calls. You all help us so much. You know, we are quick to ask for prayer but how are we at thanking those who pray or the One who answered our prayers?

I was reading this morning and read the following – by David Jeremiah:

Puppy Love

One of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. 
Luke 17:15-16

Last spring, a dog became stranded in the water at the bottom of a canal in Romania. A passerby, seeing the pooch whimpering and trying to climb to safety, scaled down the wall, jumped into the water, pulled the dog out by the scruff of its neck, and carried it back up to dry land. The dog ran away and shook itself; but then it quickly returned, ran to its rescuer, and showered the man with lots of nuzzles and licks. The video of the grateful canine became a sensation. 

Sometimes we can learn a lot from our four-footed friends. Jesus once healed ten lepers, but only one came back with thanksgiving -- and he was a Samaritan. Everyone who is in Christ has been rescued. We've been healed. We're the most blessed people on earth. Some days may be harder than others, and some seasons of life might be tumultuous. But gratitude isn't situational. It isn't based on what we have or where we are, but on our relationship with the God who pulled us out of deep waters, set our feet on a rock, and put a new song of praise in our mouths. 

When I praise Him, He is exalted in my life, and when He is exalted, I am happy and whole. - Vernon Whaley

We want to thank you for your support through your prayers, calls, e-mails and gifts. We praise God for you in our life. We praise God for our relationship with Him through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

Have a great day, love you, pass it on.
Don

Sunday's Coming

Good Morning,

First, thank you for your prayers, e-mails and calls, especially this week, that help us so much. 

One of my favorite TV comercials is the cowboy who gets knocked off his horse by words.

I was reading this morning and read the following – by Adrian Rogers:

The tongue is the meanest member in the church. The tongue is a fire and a world of iniquity. James says the tongue, though it be very small, is powerful and influential. Therefore the tongue should be handled with care.Your tongue need not be “set on fire of hell” (James 3:6). Like the Apostles at Pentecost, it can be set on fire from heaven! If God lights the fire and controls it, then the tongue can be a mighty tool for the winning of the lost and the building up of the church. The important thing, of course, is the heart; for it is “out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaketh” (Matt. 12:34). If the heart is filled with hatred, Satan will light the fire. But if the heart is filled with love, God will light the fire.

Words can not only tare you down, they can lift you up . Words give you encourgement and enable you to do things you wouldn't think you could do.

Have a great day, love you, pass it on.
Don

Sunday's Coming

 

Good Morning,

Thank you for your prayers. LaVon continues to have a lot of pain.  We praise God for the progress she has made in the increased range of motion and we hope and pray her shoulder will soon be healed.

I was reading this morning and read the following -

Do you ever feel like prayer is pointless? If God knows everything already, then why do we need to pray? Prayer is simply communication with God. In order to have a healthy relationship with another person, we must talk to one another. Similarly, we must communicate with the Father to have a thriving relationship with Him. It's way easier than it seems. Just start with thanking Him for life itself and all that you have. Talk to Him about all that is bothering you...etc. Agree with Him through the reading of His promises in His Word.

Why Pray?
by Jeff Schreve
Psalm 116:1-9

I did a little google search on the question, why pray? And one of the things that came up on the first page, why pray, was a blog from an atheist. And this atheist blogger said, ''I think prayer is the most ridiculous, useful less thing a person could ever do.''

Why pray? You know, the Scriptures says in 2nd Timothy chapter 2 and verse 1, ''The first thing,'' Paul told Timothy, ''the first thing I want you to do is pray.'' Why? Why do you want me to do that, Paul? Why is that the first thing? Why pray? Somebody could say, ''Well, you know, why pray? It's because God tells you to pray.'' That's kind of like the answer when you ask your parents, ''Why do you want me to do this?'' ''Just do what I say. It's because I told you so, that's why you do it. Do it because I told you.''

Well, we could say, ''Why pray?'' Well, God told us to. Well, that doesn't really answer the question. I mean, that's an answer, but it's kind of like an answer that just says shut up and do it.

God doesn't give us that kind of an answer. God says, ''This is why you pray,'' and the answer is found in Psalm 116 very clearly it says this: ''I love the LORD because He hears my voice and my supplications. Because He has inclined His ear to me, therefore I shall call upon Him as long as I live...

Thank you for your support through your prayers, calls, e-mails and financial gifts. We continue to make ourselves available to the residents of this RV park and God gives us opportunity almost daily to encourage someone in Him by praying with them and listening to them. Our "Chaplain Baker" shingle is still hanging on the front of our RV and people know we are here.

Have a great day, love you, pass it on.

Don

Sunday's Coming

Good Morning,

Thank you for your prayers. LaVon continues to have a lot of pain. We hope and pray her shoulder will soon be healed.

I was reading this morning and read the following from David Jerimiah which made me aware that every where we go is an opportunity to tell others about our Jesus, whether it be at physical therepy, at the VA or at WalMart, and especially where we live in this RV park.

The Painter Did It

By faith Moses... refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin.  Hebrews 11:24-25

During a hotel stay in France, the founder of Greater Europe Mission, Robert Evans, determined to share his faith with the staff he encountered there. He quickly discovered that many of them were familiar with Gospel, and some had already come to faith in Christ. Evans was interested in how they came to know about Christ and found that it was one of the workers -- the hotel painter -- who had shared his faith. "Almost everything here gets constant painting," explained the man. "My work gets me into every department of the building, I know everybody and everybody knows me. Of course, I tell them about my Lord." 

This is a great reminder that our mission field is wherever we are. For Moses, it was the desert. He did his greatest work for the Lord in the hardest locations. Sometimes our situations are difficult and challenging, but having a Moses-like faith can help us see beyond the temporal and into the eternal. Don't be frustrated if you're tending sheep in the desert or painting a wall somewhere. God has a wonderful way of using us to reach people wherever we are. 

"A sage seeks opportunities in difficulties, and a fool finds difficulties in opportunities." We are born to overcome difficulties through the power of the Holy Spirit. 
Christiana Tsai, Chinese heroine

We want to thank you for your support through your prayers, calls, e-mails and finances.
Have a great day, love you, pass it on.
Don

Sunday's Coming

Good morning,

We want to thank you for your prayers. LaVon's therapy is ongoing but she is still having a lot of pain. We just keep going, knowing God will HELP. (Update from LaVon after getting muscle relanant yesterday. "That stuff is golden!!") Praise the Lord! Muscles are relaxing enough to make the pain manageable as she stretches and exercises to get back to the normal use of her right arm and shoulder.

The Grace Adventure: What Is Grace About?
(from Fulfilled: The NIV Devotional Bible for the Single Woman)

We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. - Romans 8:37
I heard about a man who had just come through major surgery. When he slowly opened his eyes, his wife was there waiting and smiling. He looked around the room to see his children also smiling at him. After he was more awake, his wife handed him a stack of get-well cards from family and friends. Some were Biblical inspiration, some were kind and sweet and some were humorous and brought a smile to his eyes.
The front of one particular card had a collage of the myriad disasters from the life of Paul the apostle - pain, sickness, suffering, shipwreck, insults, being in the sea for three days and nights, beatings, stonings, and more.
The man was shocked and thought, What sick person sent this to me? How is this going to help me get better?
Then he opened the card, and all it said was,
So, how've you been?
The man broke into laughter. He suddenly recognized that the successful surgery he had undergone, even though quite painful, in no way compared to the repeated and life-threatening sufferings Paul had endured.
It is easy to focus on our own issues and indulge in unhealthy doses of self-pity, isn't it? We can fall into the trap of thinking that we are the only ones with such problems. .

Self-pity is our worst enemy, and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world. - Helen Keller

So, how've you been?
~ Mary Hollingsworth

O Lord, please help me not to feel sorry for myself but to recognize that as difficult as my struggles are, others may be facing even more critical problems. Help me to reach out to them.

Have a great day, love you, pass it on.
Don