General

Conversations on the Playground…..

Posted by Merrill on Apr 8, 2010 | 0 comments

So, my Sweet 10 year old Jackson was on the church playground last night after church supper when our Pastor came up to chat. As Dr. Bob later shared with me the conversation went something like this…. “Hey there Jackson.” “Hi, Dr. Bob.” “How are you doing buddy?” “Good …. How was your day? “Fine.” Pause…. “You seem sad.” Jackson said looking at Bob. Amused, Bob relied, ” Well, actually I am just tired.” “Maybe you should find a bigger bench, lay down and take a rest.” I loved this exchange on many levels…one was that Jackson was tuned in enough to know...

Now that I have your ATTENTION!

Posted by Merrill on Apr 6, 2010 | 4 comments

Coming off Lent, which is really 46 days not 40 days and no I am not bitter, but if you call it the “40 days of Lent” I think it should be 40 days. I know the whole Sunday’s don’t count thing, but if you gave up lying would it be okay to lie on Sundays? Or what about what Jackson and Grace gave up, not fighting with each other, would it be okay to go at it on Sundays? No! When you give it up I believe you stay in the desert until you have done the work…..or should I say until God has done the work within you. As I step into the “New Life” Easter represents it had me ponder what my giving up meant and what was my take away? What...

How Close is Too Close?

Posted by Merrill on Mar 30, 2010 | 0 comments

Sunday at church our Pastor, Dr. Bob gave a wonderful message on Hail to the King. He spoke of the triumphal entry Jesus and his disciples made into Jerusalem. “Hosanna’s!” were shouted as Jesus came into town riding upon donkey. Jesus knew that the rest of his ministry would be confined to this city, this place called Jerusalem. With him on this journey were 12 men. Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas; James son of Alphaeus and Simon, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot…..All ordinary, just like us. Jesus knew their faults and flaws long before he chose them. None of them had any exceptional talents or training as...

The Second Sentence

Posted by Merrill on Mar 29, 2010 | 1 comment

The other day I was trying to explain to Grace about why her brother Jackson was doing something, she replied…” I know, he was just made that way.” Unconditional love, grace and acceptance out of the mouth of a little sister! Rare, I give you that. Shouldn’t we all practice the art of Extending Grace? But it can be so hard. Why do we look at others imperfections and see “A Piece of Work” instead of a “Work of Art”? We all have our quirks, likes, styles and personalities! It’s what makes us unique and individually who we were created to be. Then I had a wonderful session with a 20 year old young man and he commented...

Rest Stop PLEASE!

Posted by Merrill on Mar 22, 2010 | 0 comments

Today I am letting my soul catch up with my body! What a crazy week last week. You know those times when you are so busy that nothing or no one gets the best of you. Even YOU! We beat ourselves up, knowing we need to slow down but have to ride it out the best we can until we come to an exit. It’s like needing a “Potty” stop on a long deserted highway! Are we there YET? We all have weeks like that where we are anxiously looking for the next rest stop! Well today I found it. Exit 3/22/2010. I am getting out, stretching my soul, breathing deep, slowing down and allowing God’s Holy Spirit to fill me up! “Fill my cup Lord, I lift it up Lord. Come...

Buckle Up!

Posted by Merrill on Mar 11, 2010 | 0 comments

One of the girls in my weekly girls group shared a story about how she was in a very difficult place the other day. My friend was emotionally spent and said the only way to describe how she was feeling was that it felt like she was in a car going too fast without a seat-belt to keep her safe. Well, we all know how that would feel. Out of control, scary and nerve racking to say the least. She went on to explain that she was sitting in her car at a light in tears as she desperately called out to God….“Help! What do I do?” Just as she cried out a truck passed in front of her with a license plate with big letters that spelled out PRAY. She smiled through...