Posted in You ARE a Part of History!

My family and I live in the United States. Here we celebrate what is known as "July 4th" or "Independence Day". In the mid 1700's, when the USA was still quite young, Americans had found it quite difficult to live under England's rule. A series of significant events led to the signing of the Declaration of Independence that eventually led to freedom from English rule after America won the Revolutionary war. We celebrate Independence Day on July 4th as this was the day that the Continental Congress completed the final draft of the Declaration of Independence. People thus began to celebrate. In Philadelphia, bells rang out and firecrackers were set off. We still celebrate in much the same way to this very day.

I marvel at the fact that we, like our Creator have been endowed with amazing creative abilities!

It's now becoming a tradition in our family to venture to a local amusement park where we are privileged to watch a spectacular display of fire works. Every year they try to out do themselves at Lakemont Park. I must have counted nearly a dozen different colors as they dazzled the evening sky. I couldn't help but to marvel, ponder and entertain various thoughts as we kicked back to watch. I marveled at the fact that we, like our Creator have been endowed with amazing creative abilities. I thought about the skill that is required to set off such a marvelous display of fire works without blowing oneself up in the process, and the ingenuity that is required to create the many colors and patterns. Oh, how we resemble our Maker! I found my mind then began to think about our very thoughts! How precious it is to have the ability to commune with one another, to share a word of encouragement, to plan an event, share a dream or to teach one another! Oh, how precious this truly is! I thought about those whom we have known and loved that have slipped from our realm and view. Those whom we love who have gone on to be fully in the presence of our Lord. I thought about the way they used to share their thoughts with us and the fellowship that we shared with them together on this earth. We human creatures can be a very forgetful bunch! If we don't become pro-active in either recording our thoughts, particularly, of the most vital thoughts on salvation and Jesus Christ the Word, just imagine how easily and quickly how our thoughts about such things can fade away! As a believing Christian, I do not believe that our thoughts vanish altogether when we die, they only vanish from this present earthly life. King David and King Solomon, two very wise men who sought after and loved the Lord provide us with wisdom in this and many others areas of life. The Psalmist admonishes us to put our trust in God and reminds us that in the day that we breathe our last, our thoughts perish. This is how the Amplified reads:

Psalm 146:4 3-Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no help. 4-When his breath leaves him, he returns to his earth; in that very day his [previous] thoughts, plans, and purposes perish.

Some theologians interpret verse 4 to mean that we cease to be completely, that our thoughts are gone for good until the resurrection. Hence, the doctrine of "soul-sleep". Still others interpret verse 4 to mean that our thoughts are now no longer accessible by inhabitants still on the earth but our spirits & thoughts will return to God. King Solomon, also quoted from the Amplified Bible provide us with these words of wisdom:

Ecclesiastes 12:7 7-Then shall the dust [out of which God made man's body] return to the earth as it was, and the spirit shall return to God Who gave it.

If our thoughts and plans on this present earth cease when we enter eternity, how important should it be that we actively record our thoughts for our friends and loved ones? How often do we even give thought to our heavenly home? As brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus, heaven should be uppermost in our thoughts, for it is there that our Heavenly Father resides. Allow yourself, if only for a moment to consider your great grandchildren. Will they remember you? Will they even have the chance to meet you this side of heaven? Unmarried? Well, how about your siblings? Your nieces and nephews? There is a way to reach beyond our small scope and even past the small amount of time that we have here to touch future generations for Jesus Christ! We are given MANY creative talents for this very reason! To glorify God and to reach BEYOND ourselves. Remember what James wrote; " Faith Without Works is Dead".

Prayerfully consider how you can reach out and share the Gospel, even in the future!

In Him,

Posted in You ARE a Part of History!

I don't think that any of us need a reminder of how quickly time can pass us by. As I have spent quite a bit of time lately researching the lives of my ancestors, I've come to realize that much of what I am surrounded by at this very moment in time, my knick knacks,  blankets,  housewares and such, and even the very house that  I am sitting in can be long forgotten with the passage of time.  In as few as 50 years or so, only those material things that I make an effort to preserve and pass on, may be the only things that will make a lasting impression on those who will come after my husband and myself.  

Put yourself in the shoes of your parents.  Do you remember what was important to them as you were growing up?  What did they hold dear?  What family traditions did they pass on to you?  Did they do special things during the holidays?  My mother can't walk very well at this time in her life but that hasn't stopped her from recalling each and every step that she takes in prepartion for the up and coming Christmas celebrations!  Her reasons for placing one of several nativity sets in certain designated places in her home varies but we've all grown accustomed to her way of preparations.  Though I had never met my grandpa on my mother's side of the family, I know that he made an impression upon her heart with the nativity set that he carefully displayed  before my mother when she was a child. 

It hasn't been 80 years since my grandfather passed away but just about everything that had been a part of his daily life in the realm of the material is gone now.  Living at the time of the Great Depression was very difficult.  They didn't have much in the way of things, so it isn't difficult to see why not much in the neighborhood of memorabilia was on hand to pass down. 

What stirs YOUR memories of your parents?  How about your grandparents?  What are you doing in your life that is similar to the patterns of living that they have displayed before you?  What have your children shared with you through the years that they have taken with them in their hearts?  The only good thing about SOME of the clutter that we collect are those good memories that had been built.  A long forgotten time of hugs and kisses, those memories can all come flooding back as you stumble upon that once cherished vase of imitation plastic roses that once adorned your mantel or shelf.  It was the very first gift that your child saved pennies to buy, just for you.

How will YOU be remembered by your loved ones?  What impressions are leaving upon them in your daily comings and goings?


In His Love,