GCR Women

When I was in high school, one of my favorite bands was Blood, Sweat & Tears.  They had a song called "And When I Die."  Listening to the words today, it sounds like someone trying to be at peace with death and the afterlife.  But the words keep singing in my mind:  "and when I die and when I'm dead, dead and gone, there'll be one child born in this world to carry on, to carry on." Part of becoming a Christian is dying to self and living for Christ.  Intellectually, I understand the principle but I have trouble practicing it.  I'll be going along, doing good from a place deep inside me, and then, out of nowhere, I start thinking selfish, self-centered thoughts, thoughts full of pride, seeking credit for my actions.  Why is that?! I often have a conversation going on inside my head: "I'm thankful for being able to do this or that for this person or that." "Yeah, you deserve a lot of credit for being such a good servant - so...

We spent the weekend with our children and grandchildren in Austin.  Precious times!  Children (even grown ones) change so much when you don't see them regularly.  I'm glad we had the chance to be with them and talk and laugh and catch up a little. After we left them, we drove to Dallas to check on my parents.  Mom's in the hospital and Dad's right there faithfully by her side every minute, holding her hand, comforting her the way only he can.  After nearly 69 years of marriage, it's hard to tell where one life stops and the other begins.  They're woven together in the tapestry that has been their life. I miss my family.  I wish we lived closer together so we could see each other more often.  I'd probably drive my kids nuts, if we did.  But I miss them all so! Life is not easy.  We rush through our youth trying to get all the pieces in place so we can really live.  Then, when we finally think we've got all the pieces just abo...

Fall in Virginia!  What a wonderful time to visit this state! The highways and byways wind along following the path of a creek or river as it works its way through the mountains.  Every curve and rise reveals new breathtaking vistas of red, yellow and orange against a backdrop of green.  In the rainy weather we've been having here, the clouds hang softly along the tops of the ridges floating like smoke between the peaks.  It's so beautiful, it could make you cry. Driving these roads is challenging.  Things look different and you need to pay close attention.  Unlike home, the roads aren't straight and you can't see very far ahead. They're narrow with little or no shoulder along the sides. Instead, there are ditches and drop offs to keep you on your toes.  At night, it's incredibly dark - very few street lights to guide you, just the stripes and reflectors on the roadway. The highway signs and markers are indispensable.  Side roads and turns ar...

This coming Saturday, October 4, is Yom Kippur - the Day of Atonement. In the Torah, this day was set apart as holy, a lasting ordinance.  Leviticus 16:30 teaches "...on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the LORD, you will be clean from all your sins." My knowledge of the Jewish holy days and how they were and are celebrated is kind of thin, but if I understand them correctly, even to this day, Yom Kippur is a day when Jewish people around the world believe they can before God and receive forgiveness and be sealed in the Book of Life for the coming year.  There's a lot more to it than that, of course, lots of preparations and traditions, but I think that sums it up. Reading about Yom Kippur and the way this holiday is celebrated and the meaning it holds to them reveals the deep love and respect the Jewish community today has for the LORD and His Torah.  They do not take Him, His Torah and His commands lightly.  While I believe...

I've spent the past few days in Baltimore, Maryland taking part in the Star-Spangled 200th - a celebration of the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Baltimore Harbor and the writing of the Star-Spangled Banner.   We've celebrated with tours, food, music and fireworks. As much as we knew, or thought we knew before we arrived, we still learned a lot.  For instance, did you know that the Star-Spangled Banner has four verses?  I may have vaguely realized that there was more than one verse, but I had no idea what the words were to verses two through four. Each is powerful in its own way, with a special message in each.  But verse four is the one that took my breath away.  In case you don't know, here is that magnificent verse: Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand Between their loved home and the war's desolation! Blest with victory and peace,      may the heav'n rescued land Praise the Power that hath made      and pres...

We just returned from a trip to visit three canyon areas of the American Southwest.  Each was breathtaking in its own particular way.  Looking at each, whether from the canyon's edge or the canyon's floor, we were awestruck at the immensity, variety and beauty of the scenes that stretched out before us.  We speculated at how each was created. We heard what geologists said, but I have trouble with the number of years they claim are involved.  So rather than try to attach an age to the formations, I just marveled at what God had done. Somewhere, at some time, in some way, God caused each hoodoo, each peak, each perilously perched rock to be and look just a certain way.  Over the years, natural forces have indeed played a part in what we see there today but God laid out the ground rules and set it all into motion.  The overall effect of seeing these canyons is awe and for so many people to be visiting them, the reaction is pretty much the same:  "Look!...

We're a little over halfway through summer.  It's hot and dry. Fall isn't nearly close enough.  And with school starting soon, it doesn't really feel like summer either.  It's just kind of the in-between time of the year. Sometimes, life feels like that, too. I'm no longer young but I don't think of myself as old yet.  I'm just waiting...for what, I'm not quite sure, but the feeling that I'm waiting is so real.  And with it comes a restlessness to get started on whatever is next.  It's just kind of the in-between time of my life. I hope that this season doesn't lull me into complacency.  I don't want to waste this time.   I hope, instead, that this season spurs me on to the very best part of life yet. So while I'm waiting, I'm taking stock of where I've been, where I am, where I'm going - making an effort to lay it out before God and ask for His blessing and direction.  I know He has something special in store. ...