THANK YOU VETERANS

Today is the day we set aside once a year to honor soldiers who served and are still serving our country. These men and women made the choice to pay the ultimate sacrifice for others to enjoy the freedoms we have. Think about blogging as a perfect example. How many people in other countries do NOT have the freedom to just jump on their computer and speak their mind, ramble about nothing, and voice their religious beliefs? I am sure there aren't very many. I think about some friends serving as missionaries in a foreign country. Because of governmental restrictions, they cannot send or receive emails that have any information about what they are REALLY doing there. We should take today to think about all of the freedoms we are able to enjoy in America and truly think of WHY we are able to enjoy them.

'Thank you' will NEVER be enough for these men and women and their families. The families that have paid the absolute ultimate price in the loss of their loved one serving in the military should also be honored today. We always refer to our soldiers as heros but the other heros are the ones that are left at home while the soldiers are serving and protecting our safety and freedom on foreign soil. The dad that is at home with young children forced into a role of being Mom and Dad; The mom that is at home having to protect and provide for the immediate needs of her children; The young son who was told "you're the man of the house while I am gone" just before dad marched onto the airplane; The teenage daughter that needs the affirmation and love of her father to be very real and at hand when she experiences the first break-up...they are all heros too!

I am thankful for all of those men and women who have given the greatest sacrifice of all. Their own lives! John 15:13: Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

The picture is my grandfather, Henry Russell Hartman.

God Moves in Mysterious Ways

We always hear the statement 'God works in mysterious ways'. Of course they are only mysterious to us.

On May 19th 2008, the pastor of King's Pasture Community Church lost his youngest son Joshua (or JZ Unit) after a year long battle with a nasty brain tumor. Josh was loved by everyone he knew. On May 23rd, at his memorial service there were around 100 kids who prayed to receive Christ. Chad took Austin to this service and saw the amazing hand of God on this family, church, and student body.
On August 8, 2008 another family at King's Pasture lost their teenage son, Ethan (or EZ-E) in a car accident. I took Austin to Ethan's memorial service and saw that once again, kids prayed to receive Christ.
Who knew that the loss of these two beautiful young men would have such an impact on a community. The lives that have changed to live FOR Christ as a result of their deaths are an inspiration.

During football season Austin wanted to go to 5th Quarter which is the post game after party that King's Pasture throws after every home game. We took him to one of those and shortly after made the decision to visit the church for a Sunday worship service. We enjoyed the church we were in but after 7 years away for Seminary we were really ready to get deeply involved while we waited on God's time for the church plant we feel led to begin over near our home. We visited one Sunday and never looked back. We were home the minute we walked in the door. Yes, being from 'Small Town Georgia' we knew some people there already but even the people we hadn't met yet made us feel like family the minute we walked in the door. We got involved immediately in the different activities going on and joined the church soon after.

One of my prayers for Austin has been that he would step out of his comfort zone more and find some true friends in the youth group and get involved. God answers prayers!! Over the last several weeks we have really noticed a change in Austin. He is starting to show more concern in his grades, his looks, his behavior towards Noah, etc. He has also gotten involved with a young men's Bible study on Sunday nights. Another prayer I have had was for God to show us how we were going to be able to have another vehicle around when this child starts driving. We have been EVERYWHERE lately and we MAY all be home together for 1 or 2 evenings during the week. It has been hard, with only one car, to get things done.

Last week one of the guys at church, Zach, had told some of the kids that he had been praying and felt led by God to GIVE his 'old truck' to another kid at church, Andrew. Andrew had a 93 Toyota pick-up and had been wanting Zach's 99 Chevy Z71. I think someone said that he was trying to figure out a way to buy it from Zach. Well Zach was obedient after praying for a WHILE to make sure that is what God wanted him to do, and he gave Andrew the truck last Tuesday. Thursday morning we get a call from Andrew. (Keep in mind that these guys all knew that Austin didn't have his license yet because they were giving him rides back and forth to places from time to time. I don't know that any of them were aware that we only had one vehicle.) Andrew said that he knew that God had blessed him through Zach and that he felt that God was telling him to bless Austin. He asked us for permission to GIVE Austin his truck. We told him that if he felt like God wanted this to happen there was no way we COULD stand in His way! He cleared it with his parents, got the title taken care of, etc. and surprised Austin with it last night. Now of course it's Austin's turn to 'pay it forward' as they say. We have advised him to be in prayer for God to show him what it is that he is to do for someone else.

We have been amazed at the love that these young men, and the rest of the youth at KPCC, have shown for God and for others. I haven't seen anything like this before. What teenager (or adult for that matter) do you know that would be completely obedient to God by GIVING away their vehicle, even when they had a replacement? God is doing some awesome things with the youth and college students at KPCC and I honestly believe 'We ain't seen nothin yet!'. He is moving in ways that can ONLY be attributed to HIM. During the snow storm last weekend HE kept all of these kids safe, provided alternate shelter for some who couldn't make it back home over the mountain, and showed up in an AWESOME way Tuesday night to let them see once again HIS hand and HIS love.

God is going to move whether we want Him to or not. We might as well pray for Him to 'GO FOR IT' in our lives and the lives our families and watch him work! Ask Him to put you where HE wants you to be and give you the tools to do what HE wants you to do then be obedient to His guidance.

*The picture above is the back window of Austin's 'new' truck. He is soo thrilled with it and very glad the sticker was already there!

What is Hope

Last Monday night was our monthly WOW (Women of Wonder) meeting at church. Mrs. Patty discussed hope and that started me thinking that this was something that I needed to delve a little deeper into.

I asked some friends and co-workers what their personal definition of hope was. It was interesting to see some of the differences in the answers.

1) Hope is what drives every individual in life. A person may hope for a good job, a healthy baby, or to serve their Lord. I think every action a person does in life is all due to what a person hopes will happen.
2) Hope is a feeling and a belief: (which are two different things) that something can be obtained.
The description for me is Hope is what allows me to have peace and serenity when everything in my life has fallen apart and all I can do is cry. I may be crying but I know and have HOPE that GOD is in control and I will be ok.
It is easy to have peace when everything is going your way – if you want to know if you have Hope, and Belief, and Faith – wait until things are at their worse. How fast can you get to some type of acceptance? (And I don’t mean not being upset, God expects us to have feelings)
3) Hope is holding on to a dream that you want to come true
4) In the 'real word' - hope is more like a wish...I hope I win the lottery/get a promotion/my plane is on time. When it comes to faith...hope is absolute certainty - and knowing we can believe in the promises of God
5) Hope means TRUST, the desire for some good, and a feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.

Webster says that the definition of hope is to desire something with a confident expectation of its fulfillment.

Of course it is now MY turn to create/develop/explain my own definition of hope. I truly believe that real hope is a gift from God. I believe that people who do not know the Lord personally really cannot have true hope, for what would they have to hope in? After thinking about this I feel that ‘Webster’s definition’ works for me.

Here are some things that represent hope for me:
-The cry of a newborn baby
-The look on the faces of that baby’s parents
-The spouse, parent, loved one of a soldier sending them ‘off to war’ and being there when that plane returns with their soldier
-The response of ‘We’re going to beat this’ when a cancer diagnosis has been given
-The parents of a 16 year old who is going off to drive on their own for the first time

There are NUMEROUS verses in the Bible that mention hope. When you think about it, for a Christian that is what this book is about. If God had not breathed HIS Word into life, we would all be floundering around for no apparent reason and wouldn’t know TO hope much less know the source of all hope.

Over the years, hope has taken on different forms for me. At times it would be something simple like ‘I HOPE I make an A’, I hope that boy calls me, or sometimes more intense like ‘I hope my grandmother beats this cancer’. The A’s came SOME times, the phone rang occasionally, but my grandmother was not able to beat cancer on THIS SIDE of Heaven. However, I will admit that my hopes for her at a certain point changed from beating the cancer to ‘no longer having to suffer with the illness.’ I went from hoping she would be cured for ME, because I needed her, to hoping that healing would come for her in whatever way God willed, whether it be a physical cure or her leaving us for Heaven.

After going thru the loss of several loved ones to cancer and other major medical issues, I have decided that I cannot and will not put my complete hope in medicine. My hope can ONLY be in God because HE is the one with the plan. HE is my source of hope. I have learned that I can hope for certain things to happen BUT that my prayer should always be for HIS will, even when that doesn’t match up with MY hope.

In conclusion, I have listed several verses regarding hope. These verses speak to me personally and I hope that they touch you as well.
(All scripture is quoted from the NIV Study Bible)

Romans 8:24-25: For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have we wait for it patiently.

Psalm 42:5: Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

Psalm 42:11: Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

Psalm 42:5: Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

(Notice a pattern with the last 3 verses quoted?)

Lamentations 3:18-25: So I say, “My splendor is gone and all that I had hoped from the Lord.” I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

God gave Abraham hope:
Genesis 15:5: He took him outside and said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars – if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

Romans 4:17: As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed – the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they are”

Ecclesiastes 9:4: Anyone who is among the living has hope – even a live dog is better off than a dead lion!

Isaiah 40:31: but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Also, check out Psalm 119. This chapter is full of hope.

Security of One Who Trusts in the Lord

This will be short but sweet as they say. I have heard people over the years claim a verse or maybe two from the Bible as their 'life verse'. Recently one of our pastors at church encouraged us to read Psalm 91. I have decided that instead of my 'life verse' that I am claiming this as my 'life passage' for now. Please read and be encouraged. My next goal will be to commit this passage to memory so I can claim it at any time without having to open a Bible.

Psalm 91:
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, "My refuge and my fortress My God, in whom I trust!" For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.

You will not be afraid of the terror by night, or of the arrow that flies by day; of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or of the destruction that lays waste at noon. A thousand may fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand, but it shall not approach you. You will on ly look on with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked. For you have made the Lord, my refuge; Even the Most High, your dwelling place. No evil will befall you, nor will any plague come near your tent.

For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways. They will bear you up in their hands, that you do not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and cobra, the young lion and the serpent you will trample.

"Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name. He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will recue him and honor him. With a long life I will satisfy him. And let him see My salvation."

Reasons Our Country Needs Prayer

This is my very first EVER blog. We'll see how it goes. I can be opinionated as some may know but to get it from my head to the computer doesn't always work. Yes! IT is a PICNIC (Problem In Chair Not In Computer) error, I admit.

I decided after reading a few other blogs today that I would also post my thoughts on the same issue. As some may know, one of the very first things our new President did after the inauguration was to lift a ban that was instated by President Ronald Regan, it was left in place by President George HW Bush, then lifted by President Clinton, then reinstated by President George W. Bush. And now, once again, it has been lifted. Do you see a theme here? With this ban lifted, now the US Government can provide financial assistance to organizations involved in providing abortions in the United States AND in other countries. I have 2 major issues with this.

First, as a friend of mine so accurately stated/questioned, we have businesses going under daily, people losing their jobs, homes, etc. and we are SENDING MONEY OVERSEAS for things such as abortions?! This benefits us HOW? It in no way protects our country from the likes of Bin Laden or other terrorists. It also does not put food in the mouths of people starving in our own country or others for that matter. It does not keep the businesses open and our economy going.

Secondly, from a moral standpoint WHY ARE WE PAYING FOR PEOPLE TO KILL BABIES!? One blog I read mentioned the fact that it is a crime against 2 people to kill a pregnant woman but it is not a crime to commit abortion. Where is the sense in that? It is just emphasizing our country's moral decay. I have friends who have tried for YEARS AND YEARS to get pregnant only to not have the desired results in the end. These aborted babies COULD (ACTUALLY...SHOULD) have been someone's children. Who cares if it will hurt your 'image', cramp your style, make your life inconvenient for a while to be pregnant. You should have thought about that before you chose to engage in those activities. These babies have a right to live and the people that have longingly desired children for many years have a right to raise them in a caring, loving home.

I will step down off of my soap box for now but it is very heart breaking to see where our country is going at this point. Regardless of who we voted for, this particular decision should have NOTHING to do with political affiliation but with what is morally right and wrong. How can someone say God Bless America and damn the unborn children of America at the same time by allowing this to happen?

In the end, we must all remember that we are commanded by God to pray for our President and the rest of our nation's leaders regardless of who we voted for.
First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for Kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. 1 Timothy 2:1-2