Last weekend I was at Garden City Beach with some of our teenagers from church. There's an annual beach retreat in which several churches from our area participate.
We went down on the beach ... as usual I was snapping some pictures of our teenagers and talking with the other adult chaperones when someone heading into the water caught my attention. With a walking assistance stick (for lack of a more knowledgable term) in each hand, a young man made his way into the water. He probably went out in the water about knee deep. Then he either sat down or fell down, not sure which it was. He sat around in the water for a few minutes and then he started making his way out of the water. Only he wasn't walking. He was crawling. Yep, completely down on his hands and knees, crawling out of the water. I couldn't take my eyes off of him. I absolutely could not! Talk about an inspiration. I was getting slapped in the face with it!
As he crawled out of the water and made it to the sand, I witnessed an adult go up to the young man and ask a very simple question, "you all right buddy?" It was quite evident that this person hadn't seen all that I saw. My first thought was, "Really? That's ALL you have to say to a young man who's crawling out of the ocean on his hands and knees?!" Then I quickly realized that the person said this out of concern because he hadn't see "the whole story" like I had.
I just kept watching this young man. I could not stop! So many thoughts were going through my mind ... what courage, what determination this young man has! ... how he wasn't letting his disability stop him from enjoying one of God's most amazing creations ... the never ending ocean! I saw strength, confidence, endurance, perseverance. I was thinking how he didn't care what people thought. And of course I was thinking of my own son Josh.
To me, he was simply amazing. I thought about going over and talking to the young man, you know really talking to him. But I didn't ... at first. I turned around and headed back to my friends and then, well I'm pretty sure the Holy Spirit intervened because my thoughts turned to, "What are you doing Sandy? You know how it feels when someone stares at Josh like he's got leprocy (spelling?) or something. GO. TALK. TO. THIS. YOUNG. MAN. You need to tell this young man what you see in him ... go tell him what you see! ... what an inspiration he is ... what an amazing person he is. It will make his day. Have some courage! Walk the walk, don't just talk it! Do what Jesus would do!"
So, I did ....
Tune in later for the "rest of the story" ...
Love,
SandraDee
Hebrews 13:2
Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.
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Saturday, September 22, 2012
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Giraffes and Zebras!
Everytime I sit in front of the ocean I marvel at it's creation. It simply amazes me. Wave after wave after wave hits the shore. Out on the horizon, it looks like the sky meets the ocean. There's no land in site and it looks like one could literally "walk on water" ... but we KNOW there's only ONE who can or ever will do that.
Last Saturday I was at the zoo and once again I stood amazed at God's creation. The most entertaining animals by far were the baboons and the chimpanzees ... no question about it. Pretty sure they're all ADHD!
The most BEAUTIFUL, PERFECT animals? Giraffes and Zebras. I was awestruck by the way their spots and stripes looked. And the SHAPE of a giraffe? Oh my. The spots and stripes are SOOOO defined. Only God can do that!
The ocean, animals, clouds, wind, rain, green grass, the rainbow in the sky ~~ those are all things we marvel at. It's the BIGGER things of God's creation that we tend to marvel at, but what about the smaller things in our journey in this earthly life ... such as ______________ ... go ahead, you fill in the blank. What will you marvel at today? I want to hear from you. God wants to hear from you.
Last Saturday I was at the zoo and once again I stood amazed at God's creation. The most entertaining animals by far were the baboons and the chimpanzees ... no question about it. Pretty sure they're all ADHD!
The most BEAUTIFUL, PERFECT animals? Giraffes and Zebras. I was awestruck by the way their spots and stripes looked. And the SHAPE of a giraffe? Oh my. The spots and stripes are SOOOO defined. Only God can do that!
The ocean, animals, clouds, wind, rain, green grass, the rainbow in the sky ~~ those are all things we marvel at. It's the BIGGER things of God's creation that we tend to marvel at, but what about the smaller things in our journey in this earthly life ... such as ______________ ... go ahead, you fill in the blank. What will you marvel at today? I want to hear from you. God wants to hear from you.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Our God Speaks
I have no idea what I'm doing, seriously. What I hope to do is bring encouragement to others by sharing everyday stories about how Jesus moves in my life.
For the past several months I have struggled with living a healthy lifestyle. By that, I mean that I don't exercise regularly and I certainly don't eat right. Pretty sure I have the strongest sweet tooth in the world. Not kidding at all. Plus, I have a pretty healthy appetite. Put those two together and BAM! you've got middle age spread and little energy, especially if you're in your early 50's.
I'll spare you the "what I've tried", "how I just couldn't get motivated" ... that's not important and at this point it's meaningless. I want to tell you the meaningful part! The part of the story that finally got my attention!
For the past several months I have struggled with living a healthy lifestyle. By that, I mean that I don't exercise regularly and I certainly don't eat right. Pretty sure I have the strongest sweet tooth in the world. Not kidding at all. Plus, I have a pretty healthy appetite. Put those two together and BAM! you've got middle age spread and little energy, especially if you're in your early 50's.
I'll spare you the "what I've tried", "how I just couldn't get motivated" ... that's not important and at this point it's meaningless. I want to tell you the meaningful part! The part of the story that finally got my attention!
On a recent Tuesday I went for my 6-month physical. (6-month physicals are routine when you take blood pressure medicine and you're getting old{er}). My blood pressure was good, heart was good, breathing ... all that was good. Then the doctor says, "That's all good. What I really want you to focus on are lifestyle changes." So, he typed in my chart:
Eliminate carbs such as refined flour (bread, even whole-wheat, pasta, cereals), liquid carbs like soda, fruit juices, and starches (potatoes, rice, corn).
Eat more meat, eggs and vegetables, nuts, berries. Fruit in moderation.
Eat full fat products rather than low fat
If it's white, wheat, or sweet, don't eat!
Whoah! Some of this is new and some of it I've heard all my life. You probably have too.
Well. He was serious. Think it's time I get serious. So between Tuesday & Thursday I started trying to eat better (except for that pint of ice cream I ate Thursday evening!) and take regular walks/runs.
THEN CAME FRIDAY ...
Being off work on this particular Friday, I started my day sitting outside on the deck with Jesus and a good strong cup of java. I sat and read my bible, reading Hebrews Chapter 11 which is all about FAITH...FAITH that God will do what he says he will do, FAITH to follow Him even we are unsure of where He's taking us. Sometimes we just need to LISTEN, sometimes we just need to ASK and sometimes we just need to BELIEVE. Sometimes we need to do all three. After reading, I exercised by going for a brisk walk. As I walked, I talked. I talked to Jesus, praising him for His many blessings on my life, for his exisitence and for inspiring men to write down His word. I praised him for NEVER leaving my side. I began to tell him how I have FAITH that he does all that he says he will do. I prayed to Jeus about my health, telling him that I KNOW I need to change my lifestyle and I KNOW that it's important for me to eat healthy and to exercise regularly. I confessed how hard it is to do either and that's it near impossible to do both, and that I KNOW I CAN'T DO IT BY MYSELF, and that I have FAITH that he will help me from this point forward. I asked the Lord to help me have self-discipline to follow through with instructions from the doctor. I just kept talking and walking. And then it happened ...
I was 1/2 mile into my walk when my cell phone rang. It was the nurse from my doctors office. The results from my blood work on the previousTuesday had come back and my triglycerides were high and my level of Vitamin D was low. I was to go on a low-cholesterol diet immediately to try and lower my cholesterol, have a re-check in 3 months and if my cholesterol isn't down, I'll be going on medicine.
This was all I needed! CONFIRMATION STRAIGHT FROM GOD! Confirmation that God heard me, that he was concerned for my health, that he wants to grant me the desires of my heart. He has spoken! Oh yes he has! The timing of that phone call is no coincidence. This is God's way of letting me know what happens when I take time to be still and spend time with Him. This is what happens when I have FAITH, when I BELIEVE, when I TALK and when I WALK ... WALK WITH HIM!
Well. He was serious. Think it's time I get serious. So between Tuesday & Thursday I started trying to eat better (except for that pint of ice cream I ate Thursday evening!) and take regular walks/runs.
THEN CAME FRIDAY ...
Being off work on this particular Friday, I started my day sitting outside on the deck with Jesus and a good strong cup of java. I sat and read my bible, reading Hebrews Chapter 11 which is all about FAITH...FAITH that God will do what he says he will do, FAITH to follow Him even we are unsure of where He's taking us. Sometimes we just need to LISTEN, sometimes we just need to ASK and sometimes we just need to BELIEVE. Sometimes we need to do all three. After reading, I exercised by going for a brisk walk. As I walked, I talked. I talked to Jesus, praising him for His many blessings on my life, for his exisitence and for inspiring men to write down His word. I praised him for NEVER leaving my side. I began to tell him how I have FAITH that he does all that he says he will do. I prayed to Jeus about my health, telling him that I KNOW I need to change my lifestyle and I KNOW that it's important for me to eat healthy and to exercise regularly. I confessed how hard it is to do either and that's it near impossible to do both, and that I KNOW I CAN'T DO IT BY MYSELF, and that I have FAITH that he will help me from this point forward. I asked the Lord to help me have self-discipline to follow through with instructions from the doctor. I just kept talking and walking. And then it happened ...
I was 1/2 mile into my walk when my cell phone rang. It was the nurse from my doctors office. The results from my blood work on the previousTuesday had come back and my triglycerides were high and my level of Vitamin D was low. I was to go on a low-cholesterol diet immediately to try and lower my cholesterol, have a re-check in 3 months and if my cholesterol isn't down, I'll be going on medicine.
This was all I needed! CONFIRMATION STRAIGHT FROM GOD! Confirmation that God heard me, that he was concerned for my health, that he wants to grant me the desires of my heart. He has spoken! Oh yes he has! The timing of that phone call is no coincidence. This is God's way of letting me know what happens when I take time to be still and spend time with Him. This is what happens when I have FAITH, when I BELIEVE, when I TALK and when I WALK ... WALK WITH HIM!
Psalm 46:10 ~ He says, “Be still, and know that I am God..."
Psalm 145:19 ~ He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.
SandraDee
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