Morning Thoughts

Happy weekend! Well, this will be a busy one in most places. I was driving to Springfield yesterday to see my friend Carla and the traffic was horrendous. About a mile before each on-ramp, the traffic would come to a near standstill. It’s definitely vacation time and so many cities will be busting with tourists.  ..."We have a strong city; he sets up salvation as walls and bulwarks. Open the gates, that the righteous nation that keeps faith may enter in. You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.” ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭26:1-4‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Open those gates of the city so the righteous can come on in! Don’t you just love that picture? Do you wonder if the on-ramps will be backing up traffic into that city? The one who trusts in you, you keep completely whole. These are the ones who stay at it, who don’t give up and don’t quit. These are the righteous ones for whom Jesus will open the flood ...

Happy Thursday! Don’t you love the summertime? Casey and I were lamenting the other day that we both look so forward to summer coming and then as soon as it gets here, we start dreading the end! It’s just the “most wonderful time of the year!” Sun and summer...you can have the cold and snow of winter.  One of my favorite things to do in the summer (I have a couple of hundred) is to watch kids chase the lightning bugs at dusk. Those bugs light up, the kids run to them. How fun and spontaneous it all is—light attracts those kids every time.  And we see that everywhere. Light it up and they will come. Las Vegas, the ice cream stand, your porch, it doesn’t matter, light attracts. It’s our nature. We don’t like the dark. Except for those things we don’t want anyone to see. If we are doing something in secret, something wrong, something we don’t want “seen” then we stick to the dark. We stay way from anything that would show anyone else what we are doing.  In the first chapter ...

Happy Wednesday! Did it storm on you yesterday? We had thunderstorms around us and my sister and I were in the midst of it and I was driving so she was a little more excited than normal—but for the most part, we skirted the heavy parts.  When the rains come and the thunder crashes and the wind blows so hard (some places around us had 60 mph gusts), I can’t help but think of the Savior in the middle of it all sleeping on a boat. Disciples scared out of their wits (maybe even more than Sissy when I’m driving in the rain), and when they couldn’t stand it one more minute, they wake Him up.  (From this side of history, it’s hilarious that they said “Don’t you care if we all die?” Now they fully believed He was God and capable of saving them, but they thought a storm could kill Him while He was sleeping?)  But then, in the center of the storm, our Jesus stands up and says “Peace! Be still!” And he “rebuked” the wind. “express sharp disapproval or criticism of (someone) because...

Good Tuesday morning to you! I was reading in James this morning and I didn’t get far. I kept going over and over the first four verses.  “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” ‭‭James‬ ‭1:2-4‬ ‭NLT‬‬ I think this little passage is so confusing. Not the part about counting your trials joy, well maybe that is too actually. So instead of worry lines, we are to be making laugh lines through troubles? That seems difficult. Not only difficult but a little on the crazy side until you read a little further. James said it’s because it’s like exercise for your faith, it’s a way to work it out and make it stronger. (And we all know there was never an effective exercise that wasn’t painful!) When your faith is tested, it grows and ...

Good Monday to you! I hope you had a great weekend. Here we had a beautiful day on Saturday and some good rain on Sunday. Yesterday, we had a great church service and I heard a sermon on John 7 where frankly, Jesus just acts weird.  Last week one of my grandkids called the other one weird and I said “Of course she’s weird, and so are you! You’re all weird because you were raise by weird Hudson women. And they’re weird because I raised them and I’m weird. We are one big family of weirdos. It’s in our genes. Embrace it. Learn to love it. And then someday, you can make fun of your kids!” We probably really aren’t very normal, but then again, not many people are. Jesus certainly wasn’t.  The truth is Jesus really WAS weird. He was so different, people couldn’t understand Him in those days and even today, people have a lot of difficulty with Him even with time and perspective and resources galore. Reading though this chapter, it’s almost funny how they kept trying to figure it ou...

It’s the weekend! I happened you’ve had a good week and you’re looking forward to a great time the next two days—time to spend with friends and family and time in corporate worship of the King. I’ve had an eventful one. I went to the doctor and found out I’m going to have surgery on the now infamous finger-that-refuses-to-heal. (That should be a good time.)  My sister and I have spent about 2,000 hours researching and visiting nursing homes and assisted living centers with memory care units within a 50-mile radius. It’s a position no one wants to be in, but truly if we live long enough, we will all probably end up needing full time care. It’s that circle of life—just as we needed constant supervision when we were two, my mom needs it at 90. What we have found though, there are some nice places. Places that look like home and not a hospital so that does make it a little easier but none the less, it’s not a task for the weak, this declaring your mom needs full-time care and putting h...

Happy Friday to you! I read yesterday that “Marriage is out of fashion” and since less than half of the households in the country are married (48 percent) which is down dramatically since I was in high school when it was more like 2/3rds and down even further still from 1950 when nearly 80 percent of all households were married. So...what has happened over the last 70 years to change our perspective on marriage?  Is it because divorce is easier? A single live style is more acceptable? Women make better money? People living together? Gay lifestyle more acceptable? I have no idea of the surface cause or causes but I think maybe I know the root cause and it all boils down to selfishness. It’s really hard to be in a marriage and be selfish. And the world we live in teaches us that “we deserve a break” and “do it your way” and 100 other little jingles that tell us it’s all about us and our pleasure and our wants and wishes. Never do we hear about putting others before ourselves or how b...

Happy Thursday to you! Yesterday was Silver Dollar City Day. It was cool and rainy day but we made it a day anyway. I think the most impressive thing was that Mia and Gracie refused to let the cold day keep them from their favorite ride, the Lost River (a wet one). They have great memories of riding it with their Papa and they didn’t want the day to pass without getting on it. So alas, before we left the two of them were soaked!  Cold, dripping wet, but laughing, having a great time, and making memories, I thought of the Psalmist saying “Wash me and I will be clean!” Those girls looked like they had been through the laundry! “Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me— now let me rejoice...Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willi...

¡Buen martes para ti! Ayer, en preparación para nuestro viaje a Branson, para mis nietos y yo nos cambiaron el aceite en el automóvil. Mientras esperábamos, nos trataron con un hombre adulto que le dio un ataque porque pensó que debería haberlo atendido primero. Mientras salía, noté que la parte de atrás de su camisa decía algo sobre "tratar a los demás con amabilidad". Supongo que era un trabajador de la salud ya que era una especie de camisa de hospital, pero realmente había exhibido completamente lo contrario de bondad, independientemente . Mi reacción inicial a ese hombre fue "¡qué idiota!" Pero luego, tengo que parar y recordarme a mí mismo que me han llamado a amarlo a él ya las personas como él, no solo a los fáciles o incluso a los neutrales, sino incluso a los idiotas. Y ... a veces ... incluso yo puedo ser un idiota. (¡Sorpresa!) Cuando tratamos de hacer lo que debemos como cristianos, es muy diferente de lo que el mundo dice que es. La grandeza está más o...

Good Tuesday to you! Yesterday in preparation for our Branson trip, my grandkids and I had had the oil changed in the car. While we waiting we were treated to a grown man throwing a fit because he thought he should have been waited on next. As he stormed out, I noticed the back of his shirt said something about “treating others with kindness.” I assume he was a healthcare worker since it was some sort of hospital shirt, but truly he had exhibited completely the opposite of kindness, regardless.  My initial reaction to that man was “what a jerk!” But then, I have to stop and remind myself that I have been called to love him and people like him, not just the easy or even the neutral, but even the jerks. And..sometimes...even I can be a jerk. (Surprise!) When we try to do what we should as a Christian, it’s very different than what the world says it is. Greatness is pretty much upside down in the Kingdom. Here, we are told treat others as they treat you and get yours before someone el...

Good Monday Morning. I hope you had a good weekend. Since it was Father’s Day, it was either a really good day or it may have been hard for you— it’s one of those holidays that is difficult for for lots of peouple. I can’t help but think about first all those who have lost their dads, then those who never really had a dad, and then...those who had a dad, but he wasn’t much to celebrate. But you know, even though I’ve been in that first category for 32 years and now my kids are in it, I really try to remember and even celebrate the fact that our God is Father to the Fatherless.  “Sing to God, sing praises to his name; lift up a song to him who rides through the deserts; his name is the Lord; exult before him! Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭68:4-5‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Over the years I’ve had lots of people that were “like a mother” to me. They took me under their wing and loved me “like their own” when I was a child and when I was a you...

It’s the weekend! This morning I woke up to birds singing after a night of dreams of all kinds. And as the sun started to break through, I decided that Psalm 27:1 must be the verse of the day.  “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭27:1‬ ‭ESV‬‬ I love that the psalmist makes this personal for us. “My” light. “My” salvation. “My” stronghold. It give me a very real grasp on how close this God is to me and how very personal this relationship is to be and how He wraps around me and protects me.  Before I was saved, this Light poured in to reveal the darkness in my life where there simply wasn’t enough light to reveal on my own. Seeing such darkness made me long for Jesus and gave me a realization that I needed a Savior. It lit up all those dark corners and crevices that can stay hidden if Jesus isn’t anywhere around.  After I was saved, God became my comforter, teacher, guide, i...

Happy Friday! Last night we walked to my house to check out the progress. The insulation has gone in. My house is now insulated against the heat and cold and there was already a difference in the temperature inside the house. Insulation. Protection from the outside elements. Protection from the world.   While I was walking through last night, I couldn’t help but think of how God in His greatness insulates us from the world in so many ways. “God’s name is a place of protection.” He surrounds us and covers us with His righteousness and while we still are living in the world, we have the protection of our Savior and Lord.    I could still read most of the prayers in my house—in fact there were a few more had been added—and I remembered how those prayers were protected.  ‬‬ “GOD ’s angel sets up a circle of protection around us while we pray.” ‭‭Psalm‬ ‭34:7‬ ‭MSG‬‬ How sweet is it to know that no matter what is going on around us, we can pray in complete protection? Whe...

Happy Thursday! God has such a sense of humor, doesn’t He? Yesterday, I spoke about waiting and patience (like I’m some sort of expert!) and a few minutes later, my program for sending devotions couldn’t get it together so what normally takes me about two hours, took a little over three. Patience. And then, later when I had places to be, my car quit—and not in a convenient place (like at home or at a mechanic’s garage)—and it was 120 degrees, I’m sure! Bless Aaron’s heart for coming to my rescue. Patience. Waiting. Mercy. Both times all I could think about was “I’m going to be more careful tomorrow when I write!”  Doesn’t it always happen though? Just about the time you think you have a handle on something, here comes along a big mess to test you. And I’m sure you handle it better than I do, but I don’t score so high when I hit these exams. My usual thought is “You have got to be kidding me!”  But James tells us “Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges com...

Happy Wednesday! Yesterday, Gracie, Mia and I went to get Gracie some fish. She had scrubbed her fish tank, got it all ready with fresh water, treated the water, and had the pump running. All that was missing—fish. Hence, our outing. It took some time, as you might image looking over all of them, debating pros and cons of the various ones, but when the final decision was made, the fish person told us that the water had to stay in the tank 7 days before you could add fish or they would not be guaranteed. So alas, we will wait for fish and return to PetSmart next week.  Wait. Do you ever feel like you spend lots of time waiting? Next week we are headed to Silver Dollar City and I am sure we will be waiting for rides that are a fraction of our wait time. God has some things to say about our waiting on His timing. “I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from him.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭62:1‬ ‭NLT‬‬ “So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord.” ‭‭Lamentations‬ ‭3:26‬ ‭NLT‬‬...

Good Tuesday to you. I trust your week is off to a good start. Did you ever have so much to do in a day you thought it might just take two? Or even a week? I decided when I retired that I wasn’t going to overload myself anymore and that my life was going to be less complicated. Well, sometimes the things IN your life just simply take OVER your life and the complexities come whether you are ready or not. Have you ever been there? No matter how intentional you have been to keep it simple, all of a sudden it’s crazy and you can’t see how on earth you’ll ever get yourself organized again. In the 6th chapter of Matthew, starting in vs. 19 we are told by Jesus himself not to store up treasures here, but to store them in heaven. Because where your treasure is, that’s where your heart will be—it will either be here with earthly things or centered on heavenly things. Then he tells us that our eyes are the light to the body, but if our eyes are diseased, then it’s darkness inside of us. He says...

Good Monday Morning. Are you ready for a new week? Like the prophet Jeremiah says “His mercies are new every morning!” Some mornings we have to tell ourselves that over and over and others...the day is obviously just screaming out His glorious goodness! The last couple of weeks my sister and I have had to tell ourselves a few times that those new mercies come every morning. In stressful times, we sometimes feel like we might be out on a limb and it’s cracking, but as the prophet said when he was weeping over the sad state of affairs and didn’t think things were going to get better, “then I remember...” “Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”” ‭‭Lamentations‬ ‭3:21-24‬ ‭NLT‬‬ His faithfulness never ends and I.will.hope.in.Him. No one or nothing else. Sometimes we get so...

Happy Weekend! Yesterday I drove to my son’s house in Cave Springs. I’ve been here several times, but for some reason, I always seem to come a different way. Yesterday when I came, i thought I’d map his address. That made sense to me to just not worry about it and follow the directions of the gal in the phone. Well...I kept going in circles—literal circles, big circles (all around the Pinnacle area if you know NW Arkansas.) At one point, I thought “This is just crazy! How am I missing this?” By then I was so turned around I was never going to get here on my own, so I changed the address to simply Cave Springs and it brought me close enough that I could make it the rest of the way. Crazy.  Do you ever get lost? In life. Ever lose your way? Even when you know exactly where you are going, a situation you’ve navigated many times before, but somehow today, you don’t know how to face it. You just don’t know where you’re headed and you find yourself going in circles. Or just not wanting t...

Happy Friday! How are you doing? Yesterday Oscar had surgery on his hand. It was his first time under general anesthetic and he was hilarious. He told us everything from he was just like Jesus, because they nailed his hand to they must have run out of rooms because they took him to a cooler. The doctor never showed up, so he went ahead and framed a house while he was waiting and he thought maybe that was how he nailed his hand. He said “I was going fast! But I don’t know why they took my clothes!” It was entertaining.  On the contrary, earlier I had had two little boys in my car who couldn’t seem to quit fighting, so we decided to simply just be quiet for 10 minutes. (“if you can’t say something nice...”) The things we say—even if we don’t know we are saying them—have all kinds of effects.  How often do words encourage you, excite you, turn a bad day into a great day? Just a few good words, spoken in the right way can make your day, can’t they? Words like “I love you” or “you ...

Happy Thursday to you. Friends and family showed up yesterday to pray over my house and to write on the frame. Many of you had sent scripture and those are there too! There is hardly a clean board left. I was so very moved before we left last nigh. Verses for peace, verses for blessings, and verses proclaiming the greatness of God. The house is surrounded by the Word and we know that is does not go out void. I can only imagine the workers today as they see all that Bible everywhere. It is such a witness to them. I can ask envision if Jesus tarries, a young couple doing a remodel of their house and tearing out the Sheetrock long after I’m gone and seeing that scripture. “Look at this! And here’s another one. And another...” Can you see it? It’s because the very Word of God will not go unnoticed.  “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the Word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.” ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭11:3‬ ‭ESV‬‬ What IS seen is made of...

Good Tuesday to you! I hope you had a good Monday. My sister went home yesterday and after being together for so long caring for our mother, it feels a little strange—kind of like when she first got married (she took off then and just left me, a lot a nerve, right?) She warned me she was leaving and I told her it was ok, but it was different after she was actually gone. Do you think that’s how the disciples felt after Jesus left? He’d been telling them He was leaving, He’d been explaining what was going to happen. He had been trying to prepare them to be on their own, but when it actually happened, they weren’t really ready for it at all. And before the Comforter came, they were truly at a loss.  “Leaving that region, they traveled through Galilee. Jesus didn’t want anyone to know he was there, for he wanted to spend more time with his disciples and teach them. He said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of his enemies. He will be killed, but three days ...

Good Monday to you! Did you have a productive weekend? Or at least a nice restful one? My kids helped me get 98 percent moved out of my house and after a couple of truck/car loads and a good cleaning, I will say good-by to my house.  I am officially inviting anyone in the area to my new home dedication this Wednesday at 4:30 at 1684 W 12th St, Webb City, MO. Bring a sharpie marker and your favorite scripture or prayer of blessing for the frame. We are going to bath this house in God’s word and prayer. Thanks in advance if you get to come. If you can’t be there, would you set your alarm to pray with us at 4:45 on Wednesday? Thank you so very much if you can.  In the same sermon where Jesus gives us the Beatitudes and tells us to love our enemies, He gives instructions on building our lives as we would build a house.  As I’ve watched the construction of my house, the lot was first made level, then trenches dug, then the footings poured with re-bar support, then gravel, the...

It’s the weekend and I hope you are having a good one. I am packing up the last of my house and getting my things moved completely into storage today. It’s a bittersweet process but come August, it will all be worth it.  We spent time yesterday with mom in the hospital and watched her with her little teddy bear she calls Kentucky. She loves that little bear. She stokes it, talks to it, hugs it and then she will show him to you. The care she takes with him reminds me of the care that God takes of us.  He loves us, listens to us, surrounds us and shines through us. He wants to keep us close and just care for us because He genuinely loves us.  “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them...We love because he first loved us.” 1 John‬ ‭4:16, 19‬ ‭NIV‬‬ And what do we have to do for this amazing power of God that never leaves us, never ends, and is beyond all human comprehension? Nothing. Absolutely nothi...

Happy Friday and how are you this day? Have you got big plans for the weekend? I’m packing the last of my house and moving this weekend, so if you don’t have plans...(tee-hee).  Yesterday I signed a legal promise. Afterwards I thought of other promises I had made over the years. I promised to follow Jesus; I promised to love, honor and obey as long as we both lived; I promised to raise my children in the admonition of the Lord; I promised to pay for my house; I promised to pay for my car; I promised friends I would help them when they were having issues; I promised to support my children as they raise their children...promises we make as we go through life. God takes a promise very seriously.  “When you make a promise to God, don’t delay in following through, for God takes no pleasure in fools. Keep all the promises you make to him.” ‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭5:4‬ ‭NLT‬‬ Sometimes, we take those things we promise to God a bit lightly, I think maybe because we know God will always love...