SUNSHINE AND RAINBOWS

SUNSHINE AND RAINBOWS
God's Promise

Saturday, March 29, 2008

RAINY DAYS

Yesterday and today have been sort of on and off type of rainy days, and as I was sitting here thinking about the rain, I was reminded of a story about windshield wipers that I would like to share.

WINDSHIELD WIPERS
One rainy afternoon a man was driving along one of the main streets in town, taking those extra precautions necessary when the roads are wet and slick. Suddenly, his daughter spoke up from her relaxed position in her seat. "Dad, I'm thinking of something."
This announcement usually meant she had been pondering some fact for a while, and was now ready to expound all that her six-year-old mind had discovered. He was eager to hear.
"What are you thinking?" he asked.
"The rain", she began, "is like sin, and the windshield wipers are like God wiping our sins away."
After the chill bumps raced up his arms he was able to respond. "That's really good." Then his curiosity broke in. How far would this little girl take this revelation? So he asked... "Do you notice how the rain keeps on coming? What does that tell you?"
She didn't hesitate one moment with her answer: "We keep on sinning, and God just keeps on forgiving us."

And isn’t this the truth! What an awesome God we have that is ever ready to forgive us when we go to him and confess our wrongdoings! It is so nice to know that His grace and mercy are from everlasting to everlasting and that He loves us unconditionally.

The next time you are driving in the rain, I hope you will remember this little story as you turn your windshield wipers on.

Have a blessed day and remember this, too, that:
In order to see the Rainbow, you must first endure some Rain.

Thursday, March 27, 2008

PETS

As I am sitting here at my computer, I can look up and see a picture of Spunky, the first dog we had after we moved to Memphis. I had told my girls that we would get one when, and if, we ever had a fenced-in backyard. Well, this came about and they were quick to remind me of my promise, so the next day we went to the animal shelter. Although we saw a lot of cute dogs, there was one who just captured our hearts and so we took him home with us (after the usual procedures of adopting a pet).

We named her Spunky and she was really the most precious dog. My Mom was living with us then and she fell in love with him, too. And although she slept on Cathie's bed every night, when we are all at home she had no favorites. We would be sitting in the living room watching TV and she would go sit by Mom, then came over by me, then Cathie and then Barbie. She truly loved us all the same. She was with us for almost 13 years and we all have many, many memories we could share. Probably the two things I remember most is how she would go to the door every school day afternoon and sit up so she could look out the storm door about two or three minutes before the girls would get home from school. Then at night, right at 10 PM, (bed time for the girls), she would go into the hall, turn around and look at them as if to say, "okay, it's time you came to bed." Needless to say, she was a very smart dog and even after my Mom went blind, and we were worried about her tripping over Spunky, she was always alert and never got in Mom's way. That was about the time that she started being more partial - and that was toward Mom. It was as if she knew and understood. Of course when we lost her, it was hard on all of us but we will never forget her.

Many people say that pets are "just animals" but for us, and I am sure many of you who have pets, they are like one of the family and we love them dearly.

Because I live in an apartment, I will probably never have another pet, but at least I can enjoy the cats and dogs that my children and grandchildren have as part of their families. May they all be as blessed, and be a blessing to them, as Spunky was to me and my girls.

Sunday, March 23, 2008

EASTER SUNDAY


RESURRECTION DAY

On this Resurrection Day
We celebrate with joy
Because God’s Son rose from the dead
To devil to destroy

For Jesus Christ was crucified
And suffered on the cross
To guarantee eternal life
And save those who were lost

With stripes He took upon His back
And thorns pressed in His head
The spear thrust deep into His side
‘Till all His blood was shed

Yet knowing that it had to be
According to God’s will
To gain the final victory
And prophecy fulfill

For when that empty tomb was found
On that first Easter morn
It brought us a new covenant
That men might be reborn

So thank You, Heavenly Father
For all that You have done
Especially for Your Greatest Give
The life of Your Dear Son

Kay Smith Crouch


What a blessing to know that God loved us so much that He was willing to sacrifice His own Son that we might escape the punishment due us, and that Jesus would willingly take our place and die on the cross that we might know eternal life. All we can possibly need or want is in Jesus Christ. If we are restless He is our peace; if we are tempted, He is our strength; if we are unhappy, He is our joy – so that if we keep utterly depending on Him in every circumstance, life gets to e a glorious march of victory every day. Not that we’d ever get to be perfect on this earth, but in so far as we let Jesus Christ live our lives for us, victory would be the habitual thing, instead of defeat, as it is in most of us. And that kind of joyous life is what He meant us to have. It’s one thing that His death and resurrection accomplished.

You can’t even start to understand any of this unless you believe that Jesus Christ is your own personal Saviour. Except a man be born again he cannot perceive the kingdom of God. And you are born again if you believe that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believed on Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” You see it was this way. The whole world was sinners. “dead in trespasses and sins.” God says that means spiritual death, which is separation from God. So, in order to have life, we must be born again from the dead, not of flesh and blood this time, as we came into our earthly families, but born of God’s Spirit, by accepting the life He offers in His Word. Into that we are born into the family of God. As for the believing, it isn’t being intellectually convinced. It is an act of the will. It is saying “I will trust myself to this thing and let God prove it to me afterward. For example, if at a meal I offered you shrimp and you said you had never tasted them and I told you they were delicious, so you tasted them and found it was true. You believed what I said enough to trust me and taste. The Bible says, “O taste and see that the Lord is good. Happy is the man that trusts in Him.” You can’t be intellectually convinced till you have tasted of course, but belief is just accepting and tasting.

It is not just dying that saves you, nor is it your good works. You see, we have all sinned, and the penalty of sin is death. Whoever is willing to accept His atonement may be saved. And it’s all up to us whether we will take it or not. It isn’t anything we can do or be. It is just taking Jesus as our Saviour, believing in Him, and taking Him at His word, having faith that He will do what He says He will do.

It is my prayer this Easter Sunday that those who do not know Him, or have not yet accepted Him, will choose to receive His gift of salvation. This is something that can be done at this very moment. For the Word says in Romans 10:9-10, ‘If you will confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.’ Just believe in your heart and speak the following aloud.
“Jesus, I believe in my heart that You are the Son of God, that You died for my sins, and that You were raised from the dead for my justification. Forgive me of all my sins and accept me into Your Kingdom. I confess You now as my Lord and I have now become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus and I am saved.”
Now know that the Father has accepted you and He is rejoicing over your decision. The next step is to start reading the Bible and finding a church that teaches the true Word of God.

If you have chosen to do this, then welcome to the Family.

A blessed Easter to everyone.

Friday, March 21, 2008

GOOD FRIDAY


GOOD FRIDAY
Today we observe the day when Jesus was beaten, reviled, and scorned, ending with His crucifixion on the cross at Calvary.
When He died He had accomplished His purpose of taking all our sins and iniquities upon Himself and paying the debt we owe so we could go free. Thus He fulfilled the words of Isaiah 53:3-9
“He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces. He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open his mouth.”
Imagine His loving us all so much that He was willing to go through all this, to take upon Himself our sins and their penalty of death, and who bore them all, with their shame and their punishment, that all of us who believe in Him might be free and one day go Home to Him without spot or blemish. As you give thought to this day and what it means in the lives of Christians everywhere, please think about these things and what He has done for us.


HIS PRECIOUS BLOOD

The precious blood of Jesus
How freely it did flow
Upon that cross at Calvary
Two thousand years ago

And every drop of blood that fell
Christ gave so willingly
That every man might be redeemed
And live eternally

With stripes He took upon His back
And thorns pressed in His head
The spear thrush deep into His side
Til all His blood was shed

To heal all our diseases
And take away our sin
To overcome the enemy
As we are changed within

For when He was resurrected
He set the captives free
No more can Satan overcome
For now Christ holds the key

That we be washed as white as snow
Beneath the cleansing flood
As we come to know this Savior
Who shed His precious blood
Kay Smith Crouch

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Spring

Today is the first day of Spring, the 20th of March, and I would like to share twenty reasons that Spring is my favorite season of the year.

1 My daughter Cathie’s birthday – April 10th.

2 My daughter Barbie’s birthday – April 2nd.

3 My best friend Barb’s birthday – March 23rd

4 Temperatures are warmer

5 Can lower the thermostat

6 My lilac bush has green leaves on it

7 Jonquils

8 Tulips

9 Azaleas

10 Forsythia bushes

11 Blossoming fruit trees

12 Dogwood tree blooms

13 Baseball begins (I’m a diehard Chicago Cub fan)

14 Can open windows for fresh air

15 Watch seeds spring forth out of the ground

16 A time of new birth and new life

17 A sense of expectancy

18 A sense of hope

19Observe Good Friday and remember that Jesus took all our sins upon Himself and paid the debt we owe

20 Celebrate Easter and the resurrection of Jesus

Hope everyone enjoys this great season and has a blessed Easter.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Wednesday Mar 19th

Every Wednesday I have a Bible Study here in my apartment and although it is small, every week brings us something different. It is not a “structured” Bible Study in that we read a Chapter and discuss it every week, or study a certain book,, but we let the Holy Spirit lead us in what He would have us do. One time it was drawing Bible Promise cards, reading the verse, and sharing what it meant to the person who drew it. From a pack of thirty cards, the promises that were randomly drawn fit together as if it had been planned. We are a small group, but are all filled with a desire to know the Word and how to use it at the right time. Another time we took a page out of a book entitled “Jesus Calling” by Sarah Young, looked up the supporting Scriptures, and read three verses above and three verses below to give us a better perspective on what the Word was saying. It is important to know who the words were addressed to and what the situation was all about.
During this week before Easter, many Christians – and non-Christians - are dying eggs, preparing baskets, etc. to give to those they love on Sunday. There is nothing wrong with giving baskets filled with candy and eggs and gifts, but in the midst of all this, there are those who do not even realize, nor believe, the true meaning of Easter and why we celebrate.
My daughter and her family have a tradition of spending every Easter with her husband’s family in Eupora, MS. They will be going there again this weekend, but for the very first time their daughter and son will not be able to go. They are now young adults and have their own responsibilities which will prevent them from being there, but I know they will be their in spirit at least. As our children grow up and go their own ways, it is sometimes hard on the parents – and the grandparents, but such is life and most of us would not have it any other way.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

PALM SUNDAY

As Christians around the world celebrate this day, I am reminded of when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. People spread their cloaks and palm leaves before Him and shouted,
"Hosanna to the Son of David!", "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!", and
"Hosanna in the highest!". I cannot help but think about how He must have felt on that day, knowing that in just a few days He would be reviled and cursed by these same people. But, thank God, He knew it had to be and was willing to go through this week for the joy that was set before Him.

Friday, March 14, 2008

THE MASTER'S VOICE

As I start this new venture, I am excited that I can share my views, my thoughts, and some of the poems the Lord has given me. For this first one, I would like to share "The Master's Voice" and hope it will bless everyone who reads it.

THE MASTER'S VOICE

God's voice may come in many ways
Oft times when you're in prayer
A gentle voice inside you
With loving thoughts to share

His voice comes through the Bible
In the Good News we proclaim
And through the lips of servants
Speaking in His Name

Through pastors and through teachers
Who share His Holy Word
Through prophets and exhorters
His wisdom to be heard

His voice comes through musicians
In songs they write and play
And through an artist's paintings
In the beauty they portray

Or He can speak through poetry
Which shares His grace and love
Messages of hope and joy
Sent by our Lord above

In praise and adoration
Just worship and rejoice
That you're one of the chosen
Who can hear the Master's Voice

Kay Smith Crouch


When you look around at the beauty of God's creation, know that He is always speaking to you and that He is always listening. It is wonderful to know that ANYONE can go to Him at any time.