Too Busy

Former editorial director and longtime Guidepost contributor, Author Gordon, in an article written in 2002 had this to say about being too busy to make up your mind to accept Christ as your Savior:

"Each morning our big cat, Oreo and I go through our familiar ritual at the back door. Oreo has been outside for awhile and he really wants to come in, so I open the door and wait. I think ruefully of the Bible passage, 'Behold I stand at the door............,' but will he come in.

No, he won't. He stops and lowers his head suspiciously as if I were some deadly enemy. Come on Oreo I say tapping my foot impatiently. He sits thoughtfully and begins to wash his face with one paw. Oreo, I say, I give you food, I supply all your needs. If you do anything in return, I don't know what it is. Now I'm personally inviting you into my house, so come on in!

Oreo puts one foot across the threshold, then draws it back. He looks out across the yard with some remote, unfathomable expression. He still doesn't come into the house.

Oreo, I say, I'm not going to stand here forever. If you don't come in I'm going to close this door. This is your last chance.

Slowly, I start to close the door, Does he come in? No, he sits there, exercising his free will or something. He'll come when it suits him, not before. He figures I'll be patient. So far, he's right.

God made cats. He also made people. I wonder how God feels sometimes when he stands at the door and waits.........and waits."

Too Busy

Days come - days go

as we wander to and fro.

Come here - go heed,

house to keep and family to feed.

Meetings here- meetings there,

we are caught in one big snare.

Much to do - much to dare,

But Christ's followers should care.

Others suffer - Lord, we pray,

We need more time, show us the way.

Days we learn- days we teach,

Aims are high for goals to reach.

God is love - Christ His Son,

Bring this message to everyone.

God loves us - He sent His Son,

Let's give thanks for what He's done.

Life is full - our response,

A grateful heart,

He supplies our wants.

Doors

Doors are interesting, they open & close. Doors are such an every day part of living we rarely give them a thought unless they stick or refuse to open. The doors through which we choose to pass determine to a great extent the sort of people we become. There are school doors, library doors, church doors, doors to gambling houses and bars. We have a choice. The doors we open & close each day decide the lives we live.

Many of us when meeting with sudden disappointment or misfortune raise a cry of anger and resentment against heaven. Why should God do this to us. To be deprived of health is hard to bear and harder to understand, but we are reminded God never takes from us without giving something greater in return. Disappointments & troubles are often instruments with which He fashions us for better things to come. God will always open another door when one is closed.

This past year was a very frustrating for Bill & I. Bill having open-heart surgery and myself having a radical double mastectomy and being informed that I also have lymphoma. Things we enjoyed doing were no longer a pssibility for us. With my activity limited I thankfully found a new door opened for me with the computer.. A place where I can share my thought and poems with family & friends. A new exciting life opened. One that I can look forward in the fullest sense, a bright new day.

A New Day

From the first red glare of sunrise

To the warm glo of sunset

How glorious is each new day.

Morning sunlight, dewdrops glisten as dawn dies

Awake to doves a cooing.

Flowers opening their blossoms gay.

The freshness, newness of the moring cries

Rejoice, be glad, be happy.

The whisper of a breeze that's want to play

The rivers, creeks, lakes all that abide

The gentle current, the strong tide,

That guides our life as much it may.

The butterfly, bird, bee, all that flies

O're awesome mountain and trees,

Bring music and beauty to all to stay.

And still there is left much for surprise

To thrill each life afresh

No puppets we, our wills please-hurray!

The twinkle of star studded skies

Bring peace and self esteem

In answer to our wishfullness, we only have to pray.

The wonder of each new day lies

In God's everlasting love,

We have naught but accept, there is no other way.

Wilhelmine

Just as I am

I am known for saying the wrong thing and usually at the wrong time. In fact Bill has a file of Willyisms, words or phrases I have said incorrectly or misquoted. "A bed of roses," "A bowl of cherries," might be misquoted as A bed of cherries. I'm not a good conversationalist. I'm forever "putting my foot in it" so to speak. I ask myself does it matter that I am imperfect in this way? The song, "Just As I Am" comes to mind. This song sang at the end of all Billy Graham's rallies lets people know they are worthy in God's eyes even tho imperfect.

Just as I am

Sometimes the way's not easy

we don't do the things we should,

Our day is simply fouled up

by not doing what we could.

Our mind is all a clutter

with many a doubting thought

time passes swiftly by,

The day has brought us naught.

But our Lord is gracious to forgive

our failures he has seen

tomorrow we can start anew

the slate if erased clean.

If we seek the Lord for guidance

In all things - not just some

There is no limit for you and me

In what we can become.

Still we fail as best we try

and yet God does declare

His love and mercy is for us all

His Son the cross did bear.

We have but to lead the way

to others with this love

that they too might know the grace

that comes from God above.

Thankful we should surely be

for the lion and the lamb

but most of all for Divine Love

that accepts me as I am.

From "Our Daily Bread" I read: "The validity of Christianity is not based on imperfect Christians, but on the perfect Christ."

The Ole One Hundredth

Today was Heritage Sunday at First Presbyterian Church, Garland, Texas. We celebrated 119 years of a worshiping congregation in which Bill & I have been a member for 55 years. In 1988 we celebrated our 100th Anniversary and for that occcasion I wrote this poem which we sang to the tune, "Ole One Hundredth," and we have sang it on our anniversary each year.

Thank-ful we for the church of old.

That per-se-vered in faith fore-told.

A faith that still guides you and me,

Knowing tht we can con-fident be.

Through every day, in joy and sorrow,

We trust in You for each to-morrow.

Free from all worry, free from strife,

Your love and mercy gives us life.

Our joy abounds in Thy wondrous care.

We lift our hearts to You in prayer,

A song of praises we shall sing.

To Christ our Savior, Lord and King.

I was reminded again today that the church is not a building, but the CHILDREN OF GOD worshiping together.

When our children were small , as we traveled back to Indiana to visit our parents, we stopped at a different church in a different town each trip. We were always welcomed & made to feel a part of their church family. As Bill & I traveled to other states, particular California, we worshiped with different ethnic groups, different denominaations, different ways of worship, but we always felt His oneness.

When I was traveling, several occasions stand out: Once in East Germany , before the Berlin Wall came down, my tour group went to church.......yes, amid the communists. Christians still found a way to worship the Lord. I didn't understand what anyone was saying and the service was strange, but I felt a oneness in worshipping the Lord.

Another time in Hamburg, Germany my cousin and I went to a worship service where there was a different ethnic group in charge each week, yet we felt the Holy Spirit present bringing us all together.

Again in Greece , at the river Gattitas where Lydia was baptised, several groups of different denominations were gathered and we all sang "Bless Be The Tie That Binds." The oneness of Spirit was evident as we held hands and cried.

The family of God exists. We have only to be a member of the fellowship already established by His Holy Spirit.

Galations 3:26 ".....for now we are all children of God thru faith in Jesus Christ."

LOVE

" Every individual discovers either through his richest moments of fulfillment or his great gaping lacks that Love is what matters most." Sarah Patton Boyle, The Desegregated Heart.

It has been said that the Bible is God's love letter for his people.

One definition of love: "A state of heart & mind in which we are centered in something or someone, so that our being flows to this other center."

We can live to the fullest only if we love.

LOVE

There is a love that passes understanding.

A love whose greatness cannot measured be;

Like a vast ocean, without shore or landing,

And that great love, it loves you and me.

No height, no depth, no length can show it;

No words of man can speak its tale of thee;

Yet my heart may learn to know it,

That wondrous love that loves you and me.

For God so love, He sent His Well-Beloved,

His only Son, to die for you and me.

Thus His love to all the world He proved;

Proof divine, that cannot questioned be.

FAITH, HOPE, LOVE.............AND THE GREATEST OF THESE IS lOVE

"Nothing can ever separate us from God's love except our own blind unwillingness to receive it."

A quote by Hannah Whitall Smith

HOPE

By Faith we have the assurance of Hope, the assurance that God has plans for us better than anything we can either desire or deserve.

HOPE

Hope is what we reach for

each and every day.

It keeps us going forward

as we grope our way.

Hope is our love and trust

our riches for tomorrow.

When our todays are cloudy and

sometimes filled with sorrow.

Hope is the unknown -yet

we confident be

in the faith we have that

guides you and me.

Hope is our joy that

we have in Gods' care

Our cup runneth over

with others we must share.

Hope is our Salvation when

you & I will know

The wondrous things in store for us

Our God has planned it so.

Wilhelmine

Faith is believing what we cannot see, our Hope is seeing what we have believed.

FAITH HOPE LOVE

H. G. Wells has said: " Until a man has found God, he begins at no beginning and works to no end."

"Faith is the daring of the soul to go farther than it can see." William Newton Clark

So then our belief or unbelief determines whether we receive or reject the Lord and His Promises.

FAITH

From generation to generation,

God is a bulwark sure.

He shares our trials and makes

our cross so easy to endure.

From Abraham we learn faith,

we do not hope in vain.

From every prophet in history,

there is something we can gain.

We need to know the courage

of the pilgrims of the past,

to help us set our course,

and make it straight & fast.

With a heritage such as ours,

we can persevere.

With God by our side,

we need never fear.

Wilhelmine

One Day at a Time

RoseAnn will soon be 60 years old . In discussing her birthday, I learned that 60 years of age is the milestone for Baby Boomers. For my generation, the age was 65. It seems everyone & everything is moving faster these days. I am reminded that one day at a time is sufficient for our needs.

My favorite scripture has always been: "This is the day the Lord hath made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." ( Ps:118:24 ) I have this scripture cross-stitched and framed ( by my son, Don & his wife, Pat) hanging on the wall in my bedroom where I can see it each morning when I awake.

It has been said, there are two days in every week about which we should not worry. One of these is yesterday. It has passed away forever.

Quote by Michael Vibenko: One problem with gazing too frequently into the past is that we may turn around to find the future has run out on us."

The other day we should not worry about is tomorrow; tomorrow if beyond our control. This leaves only today - a day to start over new. The past has been erased clean and the future is yet to be. We have only today to enjoy, one day at a time.

Bird Talk
Have you ever watched a sparrow

flitting about the grass.

No worries or cares, but free

to enjoy the days go past.

He's not a pretty bird as some

that fly, often called a pest.

He drinks & feeds, a contented bird

as he builds his nest.

Now, why are we mortals

forever in a stew?

The Lord takes care of sparrows

just as he will me & you.

Wilhelmine

An Easter Story

Several years ago I had the opportunity to visit the Holy Land which included a stop at the church in the Garden of Gethsemane. The Garden of Gethsemane lies at the foot of the Mount of Olives. It appears today as it did twenty centuries ago, a most impressive site. This is the Garden where Jesus on his last night underwent the most sorrowful hour of his passion taking upon Himself the sins of all mankind. As a tourist I was encouraged to kneel and place my hand on the rock (which is in the church) where Jesus knelt and prayed: "Not my will, but thy will O Lord." As I knelt and touched the rock I felt his anguish so strongly tears flowed down my face, I couldn't move as I understood the great sacrifice He made for us all. That evening I wrote this poem.

In the Garden

Come kneel in the garden

where Jesus knelt to pray

Our Father, not my will, but thy

He knew the price he had to pay

Come kneel in the garden

Where Jesus wept for you and me

How deeply our Lord suffered

and still - the cross at calvery

Come kneel in the garden

Jesus still hears and cares

Where you can leave your worries

For our Lord your burdens bears

When I arrived home I was moved to write the following poem:

The Good News

I saw a woman weeping and I heard her say

"Is this not where they laid my Lord?"

Then from a distance one who observed the scene

"Women, do not be sorry or weep, nay,

I go to my Father and your Father to prepare the way."

I saw a woman running and I heard her shout

"My Lord has risen - Hallelujah!"

He said our sins died with Him on the cross

This was what His death was all about

We will be with Him in Heaven, not to doubt

I saw a woman singing - her voice was full of joy

She could do naught but spread the word

Of the wondrous things she had seen and heard

We will have eternal glory

To spread His love was her story

I saw a woman praying in humble gratitude

I would capture all I saw and hold it dear

And tell the good news far and near

I would pray for a thankful heart,

to God in glorious magnitude

He is Risen! He is Risen indeed!

(Wilhelmine Mitchell - 1981)

The River's Secret

What do you see river as you wind your way?

You go twisting and turning where I wish I may.

Would you share the secrets around the bend?

Whisper them softly to the wind.

You saw the first wild flower in a bed of leaves,

And robins making nests among the trees,

A rabbit hopping in a playful mood,

And you heard a groundhog being wooed.

Tell me river what else did you see and hear?

Can it really be Spring is nearly here.

You say the trees and flowers are ready to unfold

in a burst of color, all brilliant and bold.

Then I'll join the bird in his merry tune

For ole man winter surely will be gone soon.

(Wilhelmine Mitchell-2/23/71)

Hugs - Hearts United (with) God (and) Self

God has called us not only to love Him, but to love one another.
In my family we hug meaning I love you.
When a member is sick we hug which says I wish you well.
When one is discouraged we hug to show our support,
When in time of celebrating, we hug, we are so proud of you.

A hug is healthy, all natural, non polluting and, of course fully returnable.

Kathy Dettling, a director of a long term care facility has stated that the most direct connection between two people occurs through the sense of touch. Touch, particularly,a HUG reaffirms an individuals self esteem. A HUG shows that someone cares; that the individual has value. We all need HUGS.

There's something in a simple hug

that always warms the heart

It welcomes us back home

and makes it easier to part.

A hug's a way to share the joy

and sad times we go through

Or just a way for friends to say

they like you cause you're you.

Hugs are meant for everyone

for whom we really care

From your grandma to your neighbor

or a cuddly teaddy bear.

A hug is an amazing thing

It's just the perfect way

]To show the love we're feeling

But can't find the words to say.

It's funny how a little hug

Makes everyone feel good,

In every place and language

It's always understood.

And hugs don't need equipment

Special batteries or parts

Just open up your arms

And open up your hearts.

Jill Wolf