Last night, the NorthField Church and the Madison Church of Christ Youth went to the Nashville Rescue Mission to lead a worship service and hand out refreshments. If you live in Nashville and have never taken part in serving at the Mission, I think you should put that on your bucket list of things to do. Trust me, you will be blessed more than words can say. The men who reside there have had things happen in their lives that I can't even fathom. To listen to their stories...well, it just pretty much puts everything in perspective of how I have NO problems. If you're reading this blog, I'm pretty sure YOU have no problems compared to these guys. We all have times where we whine and complain, and wallow in our self pity. When those times happen to me, I need to visit the Mission every single time to get a reality check. These people end up at the Mission when all hope is lost. They have nowhere else to go, nowhere else to turn. They are at the end of their rope and ALONE. The Mission helps people get back on their feet, and most importantly, "the mission" is to teach them about the Lord. I find it ironic that I can hang out with every day Christians who have good jobs, a roof over their heads, and have anything money can buy...and sometimes in my conversation, there is never one mention of God. I can talk to these guys at the Mission and many of them?? God is all they want to talk about, and they praise Him for bringing them to where they are today. Why?? Because God is all they have. I'd rather spend my time in a group of people like that than with Christians who are focused on earthly things. Sometimes, I think God needs to bring Christians to the end of our ropes, and maybe, just maybe, we would get God when He is all we have left. These men at the Mission bless me more than they will ever know!
On another note, as I was leaving the Mission last night, I saw something that hit me hard, and I can't get the image out of my mind. Coming from a small town, I never remember seeing homeless people on the street. Even the poorest of poor people in town had a roof over their heads, even if it was a shack, it was still a place to get out of the cold. I never saw anyone living on the street. Living in a city, I've witnessed several things that I never saw or dealt with in a small town. I have no idea how cold it was last night, but it was COLD, and as we were leaving, we saw someone sitting in a doorway to a store. They were sitting on the cold ground with a coat on, a hood pulled over their head where you could not see their face, arms folded just trying to keep warm. My heart broke at the sight of this image. These are images I only see on TV, not first hand, not up close and personal. Just another reality check smacking me in the face. It made me hang my head in shame thinking of all I have. I think about all the stuff we are wasting money on during this Christmas season, and then I see an image like that, an image of someone who has nothing...no bed or roof over head, not even a pillow or blanket. It makes me feel guilty for the things that I have, it makes me feel guilty for the things that I take for granted, it makes me feel guilty for the life that I live. Even on my worst day, it does not compare to what so many deal with every single day. The difference in my life and those lives on the street is, my days get better. For that guy I saw on the street? It may never get better. Oh Father God, help us to be more thankful for all you've given us, and may we start sharing our wealth on the things for your kingdom instead of "stuff" we just don't need! Help us to be Jesus to people who need help. Please, be mindful while you're Christmas shopping of those who are not celebrating Christmas the way we do. Please, please find a charity to donate your time and/or money to. You will be blessed far above anything money can buy. And please, take time today and every day to thank God for ALL that you have. God Bless!!
WOW!! Atari 2600!! I remember my brother and I wanting one of these when we were kids. This was before I understood the concept of money and checks. My parents would always say they couldn't afford one, to which my reply was, "Just write a check!!" :-) Yes, it's too bad that, "just writing a check", doesn't work unless you have money in the bank. Sometimes, I truly miss the innocence I had as a child. We begged and begged to get an Atari 2600. The next door neighbor kids had one, so of course we wanted one because it was so much fun. Finally, one Christmas, my parents somehow came up with the money to get us one. Oh the beauty of a joystick with that little red button. I'm all about those joysticks because the ones today have TOO many buttons for this old woman. One of the very first games we got for it was Pac-Man! I can only imagine how many hours were wasted on that game, but we were in heaven. You weren't cool unless you had an Atari 2600 and Pac-Man! I can remember playing that game not only with my folks, but also with my grandparents. Keep in mind, they were born in 1917 and 1918, so this was really something for them to see and play. They loved it, too! Even though I liked Pac-Man, I soon became obsessed with Frogger and Pit Fall. Now THOSE were my favorite games!! I always just wanted to get to the end of one of these games, but it never happened. My parents favorite game was Chopper Command. Remember that one with the helicopter that shot rectangular bullets? And the sound effects...how could we ever forget the sound effects. There was Breakout, then Super Breakout. You had to use the paddles with the circular knobs with the red button on the side (shown in above picture) to play this one. The world really started changing in the 1980's. We look back now and laugh at the graphics on the Atari 2600 games. Yes, they were pretty pathetic, but we thought it was the greatest invention of all time back in the day. Video games and consoles have come a long way, baby...but if I had to choose between an X-Box with Kinect and an Atari 2600 today, I'd have to go old school and choose the one with the joystick with the red button. If you're old enough to remember what an Atari 2600 is, what were some of your favorite games? Feel free to share some of your favorite memories. Have a great day!
I'm feeling a bit sentimental today about my college days. Going to school at Harding University posed some huge transitions and growing in my life. I will never forget the first day my folks dropped me off as a terrified 18 year old Freshman in the fall of 1991. It was the first time I'd ever been away from home for any length of time, and it was hard. I HATED IT!! I HATED being 6 hours from home, my family, my friends that I'd been around for 18 years, and I just missed my "comfort zone". Even though my brother and one of my best friends from home was at Harding, it was still hard on me. Something else I learned while at HU, and grew to highly dislike (even to this day), I never knew girls were SO dramatic until I lived in a dorm with a bunch of hormonal, crying, screaming, stab you in the back, 18 year old females. I never had any drama with my best friends from home, so this was all new to me. I kept thinking, "College is supposed to be fun?" Wasn't for me...at least in the beginning! Oh, I had good times there, but I had some rough times, too. I toughed Harding out for 2 years, but I really didn't like school or being there. I was just trying to find my place, but it wasn't working. So...I dropped out after the Spring of 1993. I moved back home, and worked a few years. I got my own apartment and a full time job, and in the Spring of 1996, I met a girl who was attending Harding. We became close friends, and she talked me into returning to Harding. In the Fall of 1996, I returned to HU. This time it was different, I was 23 and "old" compared to the students who were there. It was kinda strange going back to school, I mean, I'd lived on my own for 3 years, and now I was going back to a "curfew", dorm rules, and a weekly room check from the dorm mother to make sure you kept your room and bathroom clean. Really? So yeah, it was kind of strange, but fun, too! I had a great appreciation for school this time. Going to school felt like a vacation compared to working full time. I could skip class and no one cared, but I couldn't skip work or I'd be fired if I wanted to take a nap. I didn't have a choice with a flexible work schedule, it was 8 hour work days 5 days a week, unlike my amazing Tuesday/Thursday school schedule of one class that was Archery and Badminton. I felt FREE going back to school. And where else could you get a 3 week break for Christmas?? I mean, come on...I'd died and gone to Heaven after working full time for 3 years. :-) Even though I was older than most of the students when I went back, and most of the people I had known from the first time I was there had already graduated, it was pretty cool getting to know another group of kids. I am thankful that I was fortunate to be at HU at two different times, and I know two different groups of people and friends. I was more grown up, and I was ready this time. I wasn't homesick, and I actually never really wanted to go home when it was time. My life finally changed from living in Illinois, I had moved on. My Freshman year, my roommate and I counted down EVERY day until the next break, but this time, I found myself counting down the days on my breaks to when I could go back to school to see all my friends. I would be lying if I didn't say I would give anything to go back to those days at HU. Those were the best days of my life!! I made so many wonderful memories and life long friends. I wouldn't trade that opportunity for anything. Even when I return to Harding now, I can't stop smiling because every place I look is a memory for me. Those memories are only special to me, and I'm thankful I have them. I don't know anywhere else on earth that has a Christmas chapel where we all jingled our keys and slammed song books during the playing of "Sleigh Ride". It's a Harding tradition that probably seems corny to some reading this, but the students and alumni love it! Even now when I hear that song, I want to slam a song book for the cracking whip!! :-) I know to some, Harding was lame...too many rules, too many Bible Classes, too many this or thats...but for me, Harding holds a special place in my heart that I wouldn't trade for anything. I don't know of too many schools that feel like a family, and that family is God's family. There's nowhere else I would have rather gone to school, I grew spiritually and mentally, and most of all, it taught me how to live life on my own and not be scared to try new things. Maybe that's why I'm still a drifter today, I love living in new places and meeting new people. Will Nashville be my last stop?? Probably not because there is SO much more I want to explore before I'm too old. :-) Thanks for taking this journey with me down memory lane. God Bless!
When I was little, my parents taught me about God. I remember having family devotionals together, listening to my folks read Bible Stories to me, and singing church songs in the car. My most favorite times were the nightly talks I had with my dad before bed. I can still recall sitting up in my bed, and dad sitting on the edge talking with me about God and Heaven. I would ask things like, "What do you think God looks like?" or "What do you think Heaven is going to be like?" Even though my dad couldn't answer all of the questions I had, he always just listened, and he would just honestly answer me with, "I don't know, but I know we are going to love being there with God and all of His glory!" I cherish those moments with my dad, and he will never know how much that impacted the life that I live now. If my parents had not spent time with me talking about Jesus when I was young, I really wouldn't care now, and my focus would be on THIS world, not the next one. Thank you just isn't enough to tell my parents how grateful I am that they taught me about God. I know so many children don't get that opportunity, I am so blessed. I remember feeling so close to God when I was a kid, He was always on my mind, and I always thought of Him no matter where I was or what I was doing. I loved to sing praises to Him, and talk with Him. I just knew He was always around, watching over me anywhere I was. Didn't matter if I was inside watching TV or outside playing with the neighbor kids. He was ALWAYS present to me, and I always tried hard to make Him happy. Something happened as I grew older. In high school, I felt myself growing distant from God. Not really turning away from Him, but He just wasn't in my mind at all times like He was when I was a child. Something had changed, but what was it? After I graduated high school, I thought what would get me back on track was attending a Christian college. I just knew God would be there, just the way I felt Him as a child. So I go away to college, and I'm in a Christian environment day after day, but yet...I still don't feel that closeness to God that I felt as a child. There were so many things going on in college from pledging clubs, to singing in the chorus, to going out on dates and club functions, to hanging out with your friends in the student center, to tons of homework...where was God in all this? He just didn't seem present, ever. I found myself falling asleep in chapel because I stayed up too late every night doing homework...oh well, let's be honest, I wasn't doing homework, but talking half the night with my roommate and friends. :-) It seemed God was getting further away from me no matter how hard I tried, but why? I longed for those times of the presence I felt with Him as a child. As I grew older, I finally realized the problem. A word called distractions. That's what keeps me from focusing on Him. The "stuff" in life that clouds my view, bogs me down, and causes me to worry...all of these things that were never a distraction for a kid. To this day, I still get distracted and forget that the presence of God is EVERYWHERE. He's sitting right beside me as I type this blog, yet some days, He seems so distant. But God is not distant. He never goes anywhere, I'm the one that is distant and goes away. I'm tired of the distractions, and forgetting He's always near. But somewhere deep inside, I still find that kid in me that knows He is always with me everywhere I go. And that feeling is what keeps me on track. God Bless!
