My blog

Category: Life

  • Fasting & Praying

    So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.  Neh 1:4 NKJV

    Let’s look at the context of this verse.  Nehemiah wrote this book around 445 BC.  He was the cupbearer of King Artaxerxes. The first three verses of this book recount a meeting between Nehemiah and men of Judah.  The men of Judah tell Nehemiah the Jews who had escaped and survived the captivity were in great distress and the walls of Jerusalem had been torn down and its gates burned with fire. This verse is the response to the news of Nehemiah’s brethren.

    Like Nehemiah, when life hits us with sad or disturbing news, we too cry.  We don’t mourn like Nehemiah did but do other things.  Some people become depressed turning to pills, alcohol or food to relieve the burden, some people escape through physical activities and others escape by becoming workaholics.  These measures destroy our bodies and souls.

    But Nehemiah did something different.  He fasted and prayed.  Today people fast for their diets but not for spirituality.  Fasting clears the mind. And prayer…it lifts the soul out of its dark place.

    Prayer changes not only our circumstances but changes us.  Ask any of your friends and family for their personal experiences on how their lives have changed because of prayer.  The responses will astound anyone.   There is power in prayer even if some people don’t believe in it.

    But there is scientific proof that prayer works.  According to Dr. Kent Ingle who researched the correlation between prayer and health, he states the following.

    “Although science is ill-equipped to prove the existence of God, scientific research does show that prayer works. The literature I looked at states, regardless of God’s existence, elements of prayer are universally valid—across various religions, traditions, and practices. The act of prayer itself has beneficial physiological effects.”

    “Prayer, much like meditation in Buddhism, or concentration on breathing techniques in Yoga, causes the mind and body to focus on singular focal points that align the mind, soul, and physical aspects of a person to lower cortisol levels, improve oxygen utilization, and confer numerous other psychological benefits.”

     

     

     

  • Wisdom

    11 Then God said to Solomon: “Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked riches or wealth or honor or the life of your enemies, nor have you asked long life—but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself, that you may judge My people over whom I have made you king— 12 wisdom and knowledge are granted to you; and I will give you riches and wealth and honor, such as none of the kings have had who were before you, nor shall any after you have the like. 2 Chron 1: 11-12 NKJV

    Let’s talk about the context of these two verses.  From verse 1 to verse 6 of 2 Chronicles chapter 1 God blessed Solomon, and he took the people to the high place (where the people could meet with God) and made special sacrifices to Him.   In verse 7, God appears to Solomon and tells him to ask whatever he will.  In verses 8 through 10, Solomon asks for wisdom and knowledge to lead God’s people.

    Solomon asked God not for wealth, health or abundance of any sort but he asked for wisdom.  How wise it was of him to ask God for a trait that he could use to push the nation of Israel to heights no one had ever seen before.  God was exceedingly pleased with the request and not only gave Solomon great wisdom, the likes of which this earth hadn’t seen before him or since but great wealth and favor among the nations.

    Solomon was by no means a perfect man.  There’s only one perfect man, Jesus.  But he wrote practical advice for the ages in the Book of Proverbs.  Even today we quote from that Book.

    My husband and I pray daily, both individually and corporately.  One of our prayers is that God gives us wisdom and favor in all things and with all people like work issues, family, finances, health.  All of it.   And He has been faithful to provide the wisdom and favor we need for the day.

    One day last year my husband called me on the phone from work and said he was having a tough time dealing with a case he had (he’s a network engineer and many times those cases have a complexity that sometimes can be way over not only his head but also his colleagues.)  We had prayed that morning, but this was a special prayer for the specifics of the case.  We took about five minutes to ask the Lord to intervene and give my husband the “eyes” to see the problem to fix it or have His ministering angels intervene and fix it for him.  The wind up was when he got off the phone and went back to work on it, he figured it out, fixed it and the client was happy.  We have scores of stories like that.  Where God answered the prayer for wisdom.  God gives us our needs, not our greeds.  We were specific in the wisdom he needed for the moment and God answered that prayer.

    He truly is a mighty and awesome God.

  • Freedom!

    Freedom.  It seems appropriate for America’s 243rd birthday tomorrow on the 4th of July.  This great country has weathered countless wars.  We seem to remember the major wars:  The Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Civil War, the Mexican American War, World War I, World War II, Persian Gulf Wars and the War in Afghanistan and many, many Indian Wars.  In the almost two and a half centuries since our great nations was founded, many have sacrificed their lives to keep us a free nation.

    Our flag, when flying high and proud, makes us think of those who fought and died so we can have the freedoms listed in our bill of rights.

    Sadly, there are those who don’t see our flag as a symbol of patriotism.  They want it banned.  They burn it. But then, they have that right to denigrate our flag because it’s their freedom to do so.  I don’t agree with it but that’s my opinion.

    So today I want to celebrate the stars and stripes but most of all I want to thank ALL the veterans of every war who fought and died for my freedom.  Their sacrifice and the sacrifices of their families touch my heart.  May God bless those who serve along with their families and may He bless those who have lost loved ones and are still grieving their loss.  I grieve with you.

    So if you see a service member in uniform, whether or not you know that service member, walk up to him or her, thank them for their service.  They are not thanked enough and should be.  My heartfelt thanks on this, America’s 243rd birthday.

    Have you ever said thank you to a service member without knowing him or her?

  • Genealogies

    And Abraham begot Isaac. The sons of Isaac were Esau and Israel. 1 Chronicles 1:34 NKJV

    Genealogies.  They’re important.  In ancient and not-so-ancient times, people depended on their parents to relay who their ancestors were and their history as a nation, tribe and ultimately as a family.  They passed that information along to their children and grand-children through word of mouth and the written word of God.  Namely, the Bible.

    The Bible gives us scores of genealogies and often we skim over them thinking them boring but they are significant because we can learn from them. The genealogies within the Bible substantiate the Bible’s historical accuracy confirming these people not only actually lived but where they lived and information about their lives.

    The Bible became the perfect place in which to document marriages, births and deaths of who they were and how they were related to one another.

    The advent of ancestry.com and 23andme.com sites have made the practice of finding our ancestors easier than ever.

    My husband and I decided to do the ancestry.com DNA testing before we knew about 23andme.com.  While I always thought I was one-hundred percent Italian because all my grandparents were born in Italy, I found out I’m only eighty-nine percent Italian. The other percentages blew my mind!  The reports were interesting and phenomenal but when we decided to do the 23andme.com DNA testing because it also had medical information based on DNA and how likely one would be to have adult-onset diabetes or some other disease that might be helpful for a child or grand-child to know about.

    The results were almost identical in both DNA tests.  But what I liked most with 23andme.com was the ability to connect with potential relatives.  First, second, third, fourth, and fifth cousins.  As of this post I have over a thousand connections, some of which are messaging me.

    It’s truly amazing what we have available to us in this day and age.  Do the DNA test and find out where you are from.  You won’t be sorry.

  • Bamberg

    We hadn’t intended to travel to Bamberg, Germany but when we went to Wurzburg, we met two very nice ladies who said Wurzburg had been demolished in the war and most of the beautiful architecture was not ancient but rebuilt to look the same as it had… meaning it wasn’t authentic.  We were disappointed but that’s another adventure story.  They said to visit Bamberg because it had the historical buildings we adored.  We scheduled a trip at a later date to see Bamberg.  And we were so glad we did! There just wasn’t enough time to see everything.

    There’s a base in Bamberg so we checked it out since our military credentials would allow us to go on base and shop at the base exchange.  We were less than impressed after having spent time on the four bases in Stuttgart which were much more impressive.

    A cold and cloudy day met us as we made our way to this lovely city. Although it is not on Germany’s famous Romantic Road, personally, I think it should be.  It’s picturesque and quaint. Since we got a late start, and it was a little further afield we opted to stay the night and return to our home in Plieningen in the morning.

    Unfortunately, we did not plan on staying the night so we had no luggage, toiletries or medication. But we decided to tough it out for one night. We located an IBIS hotel which we thought would be nice because my husband’s sister had stayed in one and she doesn’t stay in any junkie places.  While it was “nice” for European standards, it wasn’t what I would call a great hotel. If a micro-hotel is like this, then I’d be claustrophobic. But for one night…what the heck! The bathroom was so small you could barely get to the toilet. And the shower was a tiny triangular shaped thing. The only saving grace was it had a very cool sink! But I worried about getting up in the night and bumping my head against the wall when I got out of bed.  There was less than ten inches between the bed and the wall.

    After checking into the hotel, we tooled around town on foot. It’s an absolutely lovely city and one I’d like to revisit, but not stay at the IBIS.

    We ate at a local restaurant called the Schlenkerla which had a pub-like atmosphere and we sat at a long trestle table with another couple at the other end. It appeared you sat wherever there were seats, and it didn’t matter if you didn’t know the person or not! We had their local specialty:  stuffed onions with potatoes. We weren’t disappointed with the fare offered. The building drew us in!

    The buildings in the old city were beautiful, especially the old courthouse which was built right in the middle of the river and accessible by two bridges. An amazing feat for the year 1386! Its medieval buildings were authentic and water surrounds the old city with its water canals. It reminds me of Venice. The old town is actually a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

    I wished we’d had more time to visit the seven churches on the seven hills surrounding Bamberg, but we didn’t. If you ever get to Bamberg, make plans to stay for at least three or four days to see everything…but don’t stay at an IBIS!

    Another adventure awaits!  Next time…who knows?

     

  • Humility

    Again, he sent a third captain of fifty with his fifty men. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and pleaded with him, and said to him: “Man of God, please let my life and the life of these fifty servants of yours be precious in your sight. 2Kings 1:13 NKJV

    Let’s look at the context of this verse:  At the time of the book of 2 Kings, Israel had been divided into two kingdoms: The Northern Kingdom or Israel (made up of ten of the original 12 tribes of Israel) and the Southern kingdom or Judah (made up of the remaining two tribes).  The King of the North, Ahaziah, was an evil king in the sight of the Lord because he worshipped pagan gods. Twice the King of Israel sent a captain and fifty men to the mountaintop to summon Elijah to bring him to the King.  Both contingents of men died because Elijah called down fire from heaven.  And that brings us to this verse.

     A humble person recognizes his own self-worth in the eyes of God, not in the eyes of man.

    But I have to wonder did the captain humbled himself because the other contingents of men had been burned up by the fire of God or had it been because he had been truly humbled on God’s mountain.

    Whether you are a leader or you are not, it’s a great thing to be humble.  Here are five traits of a humble person: 

    • Recognize what you know and what you don’t know.
    • Acknowledge your accomplishments, but know there will be others who are more accomplished than you.
    • Never forget where you came from.
    • Treat everyone with respect.
    • Diminish the “I” and elevate the “we”.

    Aspiring to have these traits is a worthy goal in life.
    What worthy goal have you set for yourself?  

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Dubrovnik, Croatia

    We decided to take a Mediterranean cruise because we were in Europe already and we might never get the chance to go again. Plus, my husband wanted to show me where the Air Force stationed him in Turkey when he was in the military.  The three places on the seven-day cruise would be Croatia (Yugoslavia when I traveled to Italy as a girl), Greece, and Turkey.  I was excited to go to Turkey and Greece but Croatia?  Who goes to Croatia?  But it was on the itinerary so what do I know?

    We flew to Venice and boarded the ship ready to start the cruise.  My husband had never been on a big cruise ship and neither had I. Can I tell you we loved the cruise?  My daughter worked for Norwegian Cruise Line at the time and got us a great deal on a balcony room.  The cabin was spacious…for a cruise accommodation, that is.  Even if the bathroom was not.

    I didn’t realize it but Dubrovnik was not a deep-water port so the captain docked the ship a ways away from the port but we could see the port and marina from the ship’s deck.  I thought we’d just sail right up to the port and disembark as we did when we got on in Venice.  Not so. We’d have to take little boats called “tenders” to the port.  I also didn’t realize these boats doubled as lifeboats.  The tenders are enclosed and get quite hot for the short trip to shore. I can’t imagine being on that tender that held 150 people if something happened to the ship. Since we had other shore excursions planned, and I wasn’t keen about going to Croatia in the first place, we opted to just hang out in the old city and find things to do until we got back on the ship.

    We didn’t have much time to explore because the ship’s personnel told us many times if we missed the last tender, we were on our own to get to the next port.  Well, that would not happen given we almost missed the ship when we boarded in Venice.

    We tooled around the old town walking through the vast array of alleyways between buildings that led to quaint restaurants with outdoor seating.  We looked at the architecture of the square’s many buildings and the churches.

    We bought an ice cream cone because the heat of the day was getting to us.  Thankfully, the shop person spoke English and we could buy our cones with the euros we brought with us.

    The city was lovelier than I expected and reminded me of my beloved Italy.  They simply spoke a different language.  Today I recommend visiting Croatia because it’s beautiful and the people are very kind and accommodating.

    At one point, a bird dropped its load on my arm and thoroughly disgusted me but I had tissues to wipe it off but the tee-shirt was toast for the rest of the trip.

    We still had time to kill, so we took a ride on another type of ship ride around the bay.  An 18th-century fishing ship!  Getting on and off that ship was harrowing not anything like the big cruise ship but then why would it be?

    There weren’t many of us on the ship, maybe a dozen or so passengers who were brave enough to board the decrepit-looking ship. The only seats were rough-hewn free-standing benches next to the low walls of the ship.

    Once out of the marina the ship sailed around the bay with the masts flapping in the summer wind.  When the boat turned it leaned into the water.  The edge of the boat was mere inches from taking on water.  And while the ride was pleasant, it was also nerve-wracking.

    From the sailboat, we could see the summer sun-worshippers didn’t have much sand, but they made the most of what they had. There was one sandy beach, but it was in a cove and it appeared the only way to get to it was by boat.  The old city’s massive fortress walls were awe-inspiring.  Makes you want to study the history of the city.

    I’m glad we went on that sailboat, but I’d more appreciate a new boat next time.

    The adventure of the day over, we hopped a tender and returned to the ship.

    Another adventure next week.

  • Promises…Promises…

    And the king took an oath and said, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life from every distress, just as I swore to you by the Lord God of Israel, saying, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall be king after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ so I certainly will do this day.” 1 Kings 1:29-30

    This verse introduces a solemn oath. David would confirm the previous promise he made to Bathsheba, that her son Solomon would become the next king, and he promised to settle the issue that very day. He would abdicate the throne and give the crown to Solomon and crushed the plans of his other son.

    David shows us he made the promise before God and he would keep his promise.

    This verse calls to mind that when we make a promise, we must keep it.  It doesn’t matter if it’s a small promise to go to lunch with a friend or if you’ve promised to take care of a task for a sibling or parent or if you have pledged a possession.  It doesn’t matter.  When a person breaks a promise, it’s hard to trust that person again.

    And it’s especially hard when we give promises to our small children and break them.  Children depend on their parents and guardians to tell the truth and not break a promise, no matter how insignificant that promise may be. Our children are our greatest resource.  We must treat them with kindness and care where our promises are concerned.

    David was the King, a leader.  It calls to mind our leaders today.  They rarely keep their promises and wonder why their constituents don’t trust them.  In today’s world, it’s all right to break a promise if it furthers that leader’s career goals.

    Same in the business world.  If you promise your client you will call him on a specific date..  Call.  Keep your promise.

    Have you ever made a promise you reneged on?  I have and this verse convicted my heart.  The easiest thing to do is to NOT promise unless you are certain you can keep the promise.  So the wisest thing to do is say, upfront, what the expectations are.

    Many business people use the vernacular:  Under-promise and over-deliver.  A great way to do business. I wish everyone lived by that philosophy, don’t you?

     

  • Birthday Blessings

    It seems fitting to write a blog today about birthdays. Yes, it’s my birthday but I won’t tell you how old I am. Those of you who know me…family, classmates, and friends, know how old I am so I won’t bore you with the details.

    I want to talk about a few things concerning birthdays.

    A toddler doesn’t really know what the big hub-bub is about. They smash cake into their mouths, play with the many toys but do they know it’s their birthday and they are a year older? Surely not! Then when that child gets older, he or she looks forward to their birthday. There’s cake, ice cream, friends and family and sometimes even something special like a pony ride. As that child progresses, birthdays are fun and they may even extend to a birthday “week” rather than just a single day but when a person reaches a certain age, having a birthday seems like it’s just another day. But it isn’t, really. Being remembered makes all the difference in the world.

    With social media, birthday reminders are always popping up on my screen and I try to wish all of my family and friends birthday wishes and they reciprocated today with an outpouring of words of encouragement and even telephone calls. Birthday presents? I can do without them. When I watched the number of Birthday wishes increase today, I told my wonderful husband how loved I felt. I still do.

    But then I thought about God and His role in my birth. The psalmist David said in Psalm 139:13-18 (NKJV):

    For You formed my inward parts;
    You covered me in my mother’s womb.
    I will praise You, for am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    Marvelous are Your works,
    And that my soul knows very well.
    My frame was not hidden from You,
    When I was made in secret,
    And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
    Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
    And in Your book they all were written,
    The days fashioned for me,
    When as yet there were none of them.
    How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
    How great is the sum of them!
    If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
    When I awake, I am still with You.

    And another verse about how God loves us in Matthew 10:30 (NKJV) the Apostle said:

    But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

    I can’t even comprehend that kind of love…that He numbered every hair on my head…and yours too! His unconditional love is awe-inspiring and I want to thank Him for my life today and I pray I can measure up to the person He wanted me to be.

    These verses prompted me to do a little study on birthday verses from the Bible. These verses have also lifted me up today. I hope you will print out these verses and have them to bless you on your birthday…an

    For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Eph 2:10 NKJV

    For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jer 29:11 NKJV

    For by me your days will be multiplied,
    And years of life will be added to you. Proverbs 9:11 NKJV

    You will show me the path of life;
    In Your presence is fullness of joy;
    At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11 NKJV

    May He grant you according to your heart’s desire,
    And fulfill all your purpose. Psalm 20:4 NKJV

    So teach us to number our days,
    That we may gain a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12 NKJV

    With [a]long life I will satisfy him,
    And show him My salvation. Psalm 91:16 NKJV

    GODS LOVE 3 Delight yourself also in the Lord,
    And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
    Commit your way to the Lord,
    Trust also in Him,
    And He shall bring it to pass.
    Psalm 37:4-5 NKJV

    Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed,
    Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning;
    Great is Your faithfulness. Lamentations: 3:22-23 NKJV

    And finally Psalm 139:1-6 NJKV
    O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
    You know my sitting down and my rising up;
    You understand my thought afar off.
    You comprehend my path and my lying down,
    And are acquainted with all my ways.
    For there is not a word on my tongue,
    But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether.
    You have hedged me behind and before,
    And laid Your hand upon me.
    Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
    It is high, I cannot attain it.

    No matter when your birthday is, I’m wishing you a very Happy Birthday with God’s love and peace in your life.

  • Military mourning.

    And they mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son, for the people of the Lord and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword. 2 Sam 1:12 NKJV

    The context of this verse is that King Saul of Israel and his son Jonathan died in battle with the Philistines.  David, who would be the next King of Israel, and his men are those who are mourning, fasting and weeping for the two men.

    David loved King Saul, and he was a best friend to Jonathan and it hit him harder because he lost both of them.

    Those of us who have lost someone dear to us can relate to this verse.  And while I have not lost a dear one in battle, there are many that have.

    It seems fitting that we talk about men and women lost in battle.  Any family who loses a loved one in war is a tragedy.  But a family who loses all of their children at one time is unthinkable. That’s just what happened to the Sullivan family during World War II.

    While the Sullivan boys stipulated they wanted to serve together in January 1942, they were all lost at sea when their ship, the USS Juneau, sunk in November 1942.

    Several years after the Sullivan parents lost their entire family, and another family lost four members of their family, the military adopted the sole survivor policy which is a set of regulations designed to protect members of a family from the draft or from combat duty if they have already lost family members in military service.

    Parents who lose a baby or a child are overwrought with the pain of loss but to lose five sons in one fell swoop, I can’t even imagine the pain of suffering that family endured. Some may say, it was a long time ago or time has a way of healing.  That may be true to some extent but a parent who loses a child whether that child is a baby, child or an adult, can’t ever be consoled and time doesn’t heal.  It only covers the grief until the anniversary of their child’s birth or death.

    Parents who have lost children have said it never goes away and I believe them.  It’s always there, in the corner of their heart. Jumping into the forefront of their minds when they least expect it.  Something or someone will trigger a memory and grief rushes into their hearts.

    May we all have an extra measure of compassion for those parents who have lost a child.