Jesus ,The Man Said"Let This Cup Pass From Me."

Greetings,
Have you ever thought that you have had enough,You couldn't handle any more,the affliction was more than you could bear,the trial of fire was beyond your capabilities to get through it?The Biblical quote pertaining to what Jesus asked His Father was from Matt:Ch.26v39"O my Father,if it be possible,let this cup pass from me:nevertheless not as I will,but as thou wilt."This passage comes from the night in the garden of Gethsemane when Jesus knew they were coming for Him to die on the cross for our sins.In verse41 Jesus says to His disciples"Watch and pray,that ye enter not into temptation:the spirit is indeed willing,but the flesh is weak."Verse42"O my Father,if this cup may not pass away from Me,except I drink it,thy will be done."It is important to note that the HUMAN Jesus knew what His "flesh body"was going to go through and did what?Asked His Father to take this task from Him if it was possible!From time to time I have been beating myself up for being weak,lacking faith,not trusting God enough to see me through the consequences to my body of radiation and chemotherapy in order to reach my body's healing point.My "flesh" is beginning to feel the debilitating effects of the treatment.The Holy Spirit put on my heart to go to these passages in the Bible;certainly NOT to compare my trial with what Jesus went through for us,however,to understand that even God the Son,because He was made "flesh",as us,and knew what His body was about to go through asked to be released from His trial of fire.God the Father,however,had the big picture in mind;His Son's death on the cross would bring eternal life to all who accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
What is the big picture for me?I believe it's very easy to praise our God when things are going smoothly.How much praise do we give God when we hit the rough patch?What are our prayers then?how strong is our faith?Do we fortify our foundation of His love for us by studying His word?Can we see the blessings our affliction can become if we turn our situation over to Him;and let Him show us the way to walk through our fire?I know that God is with me,I have experienced too many spiritual awakenings during this trial to think otherwise,however,my spirit is willing ,my flesh is weak.The Holy Spirit reminded me of all the things I have been led to do from the beginning of this affliction; starting a journal focusing on finding God's immaculate word through the Bible, writing a blog to share my experiences[I/you do not walk alone],teaching a weekly morning class sharing my "walk"both earthly and spiritual with others.In other words,I need to STOP beating myself up for my weaknesses and see the strength of God's love for me to carry me through.God is leading me to have my affliction be a blessing to others by showing me this life is nothing compared to eternal life with Him.
I/we need to recognize all disease is from sin.We are all going to leave this earthly life.We Christians have the faith of knowing God cannot lie and Jesus said '"I go to prepare a mansion for you in my Fathers house."I hope that you who read this letter can relate to my frailties as a human being with it's doubts and fears however,more importantly ,to take into your spiritual heart the truth of the necessary sacrifice that Jesus completed for us;even though His "flesh" was weak He stood firm on His Fathers' will.I/we need to remember our big picture;to prepare ourselves through God's word in order to spend eternity with Him.
Until next time,with Christian love,Joe

The Clean Slate/No Eraser Needed

Greetings,
I was laying in bed this morning letting my mind wander,not thinking about anything particular,just enjoying the warmth of my wife,the relaxation of a good nights sleep and praising God for giving me a new day.Bear in mind I didn't have any requests on my heart for God to hear,just praise for His goodness towards me and my family.All of a sudden comes the thought into my heart"You have a clean slate/no eraser needed"write about it!
In previous letters I have shared the fact of the joy available to all of us by recognizing the amazing gift of grace given to us by Jesus dying on the cross for our sins"By His stripes we are healed."My letter today will focus on the fact that God says in His word that when we ask Him to forgive our sins coming from our contrite heart He will!His word is very specific,here are some examples of this truth from His Word;
.They are blotted out[Isa,44:22;Acts3:19]
.Forgiven[Ex.34:7;1Jn.1:9;2:12]
.Made white as snow[Isa.1:18]
.Purged away[Ps.79:9;Heb1:3]
.Freed from them[Rom.6:7,16-23;8:2]
There are many more references in the Bible regarding the forgiveness of sin.
The point is ;we don't need an eraser,God provided the "clean slate" through His Son Jesus,His dying on the cross was/is all the "eraser"we would need FOREVER MORE!How can it not bring tears of joy to our hearts when we grasp the magnitude of this truth?Each day we start anew,with out blemish,thank you Jesus!Here we have a God that loved us so much ,He gave us a "free"will wanting us to choose Him ,and sacrificed His Son on the cross because He knew we could not reconcile our souls to Him on our own,HOW GREAT A LOVE IS THAT?
I humbly ask each of you,like me,to start your day praising and glorifying God for this wonderful gift from Him"A clean slate/no eraser needed."
Until next time,may God continue to bless you on your walk towards Him,Joe

The Process Of Life vs The Process Of God In Our Life

Greetings,
While I was receiving my chemo treatment today,I was thinking about my process of life;you know,a review of my past;my accepting Jesus and my "heart change",the ups, the downs,the blessings,my family,my friends etc.Those of you that know me are aware that one of my commonly used phrases is"that's the process of life".The spirit put on my heart to talk about,and compare that phrase to God's process in our life.
Now this letter will be interesting,because I don't know where I'm going with this.I suppose that has been true of all my letters.The Holy Spirit guides me and I write;I haven't shared that thought with you before,however,I am sure you would agree it's much easier on the "set up" if you know what your goal is.All I know is this voice in my heart says,write about this subject and I will guide you.AMAZING!
I will use just one example in my life to compare the 2 processes;I know there are many I could use,however,my diagnosis of cancer has changed me so many different ways,lets use "it" as a starting point.
.The life process
The statistics show one out of every two men born in America today will die of cancer,and one of every three women.I mention this, because I am sure most of us have experienced someone in our life "getting"cancer or dying from this terrible disease[perhaps it's the treatment that's so terrible-different subject]
Upon diagnosis,my life process for my wife Toni and me was,share the shock,ask the questions,take action.To include,notifying family and friends,seeing specialists,making decisions on course of treatment etc.More importantly,seeing my mortality,and carrying 24/7 the weight of the diagnosis.As part of this life process,there are many "afraid"moments,[hardly shared],many minutes thinking of the dire future scenarios,the trusting of the "earth"specialists.I could go on but, I'm sure you get the point.I'm thinking that this life process is probably the most likely scenario for an Agnostic,an Atheist,or someone that is unsure of whether or not there is a Creator God and if there is,He has to be too busy to worry about me..I would ask you now to take a few minutes and ask yourself,have you ever had a situation in your life that has caused you to have a similar life process I just described?Now the God process,the joy of finding Him many years ago,and the peace of knowing He will NEVER leave me,ALWAYS love me,I am heaven bound!Thank you,Jesus!
.The process of God in our life
God ,through the Holy Spirit,came to me as a quiet voice at 1:30am the very first night of my diagnosis.I couldn't sleep,I was prowling around the house;He said"write a journal"I said "what?,I never have liked to write"He said "do it,I will guide you"Wow!as Pastor Goss has asked"Is it me?God?or the devil?"I prayed for the answer,the quiet voice insisted for several hours,I started a journal!!for a period of several days,always in the wee hours of the morning{the voice in my heart would wake me up,it is time to write,weird huh?]I wrote about,not only the cancer but,my life up to that point as follows; ;my team[with God in the lead],my fear[He took it away,using my sister Mary as His intermediary].I wrote about how to pray for healing[His truth from the Bible],about His glory,about my day of atonement[all the times I walked away from Him],how to enjoy each day[His perspective from the Bible],about being"born again"and my heart change,and finally,I choose God's House. Get behind me devil!
All of this writing was done prior to surgery.Several weeks went by and all I heard from the Holy Spirit was trust me.Then came the day when the Holy Spirit told me to start a "Blog"sharing my life's experiences.So here we are ;my desire to share ,your decision to read.In the end,like me you will have to decide what does my earthly/spiritual walk have to do with you?Can it change how you think about things?Can my weaknesses keep you from making the same mistakes?,and more importantly,which process will you choose?The life process or the God process? More importantly, will you find the "True God" before you take your last breath?I want you to know I got it!!Will you?If so,All glory to God!Until next time,with Christian love,Joe

The Focus Is Not What You Missed;It's What You Found

Greetings,
I was talking with my brother Ray last night,the conversation covered several subjects; from our health ,family updates,and generally the process of our lives on this earthly journey.I know from my perspective,and I'm sure Ray's ,the most important time was spent in the prayer we shared asking our Father God to guide and lead us on future decisions we will make,and more importantly,that we would be given the Spirit driven words to bring our unsaved loved ones to Jesus our Lord and Savior.
I was reflecting this morning of how much time my brother Ray and I have missed sharing our life's experiences because of our personality differences ,thought process differences[mostly leading to angry arguments]and vocational choice differences[management vs. union].I am sure we both would have preferred an "adult" conversation ,however,we could not stop ourselves from the big brother/little brother rivalry,me being the big brother.I must admit,however,that I carry the burden of knowing that part of my problem was my own disease of "self righteousness" and I'm always right attitude.
My change to the better ,having found God in my life,for the past 25 years was unseen by Ray because of what happened before the spiritual transition.As I was reflecting on this the Holy Spirit put on my heart not to FOCUS ON WHAT WAS MISSED,IT"S WHAT YOU FOUND".The healing process has been a gradual happening over time as we stayed away from any "heavy"subjects and just shared "light"conversation to include Rays' hunting and fishing adventures,my retirement activities,and family updates.In my mind,the epicenter of the transition came when Ray and I had a spiritual conversation highlighted by my leading him in the sinners prayer to accept Jesus as his Lord and Savior.My brother is a strong follower of the Roman Catholic Church,however,I was concerned that their teaching on being "Born Again" was less specific than what God required;it was a very emotional time for the both of us,I never felt closer to my brother !The crux,the point,the purpose of this letter is ;you can't go back and lament what was lost,but to enjoy the new relationship that was found!How many times have we "robbed"ourselves of the joy of a new ,improved,fulfilling relationship with someone we love by rehashing the old? God,in His infinite wisdom,said when we accept Him and ask for forgiveness of our sins,He not only will forgive us ,He will NEVER bring them up again" as far as the east is from the west". The bottom line is, if it's a good enough truth of our Heavenly Father,it should be good enough for us!Until next time,enjoy your new found relationships and don't waste time on what was wrong before you found the delight in this "new"love experience.God bless all of you on your journey towards Him,Joe

Where Did The Joy Come From?

Greetings,
I wonder how many times in our life I/We "shorted"ourselves on joy because we didn't take the action to accept it when offered!We need to set up the scenario for a "joy"experience;because we never know when it's going to be available.Examples of possible joy situations not experienced, for whatever reasons, are necessary to get us started on "Where Did The Joy Come From?".I will list a few;
.A social event with friends-not attended.
.A wedding,graduation,birthday etc.-not attended.
.Time spent with the children,just because.-not finding the time.
.Time spent with your spouse,just the 2 of you.-not doing it.
.Time spent with your Christian family[church]-not getting involved.
There are many instances in our life where the potential for joy is missed,because we made the decision to NOT be part of sharing our life with others!I know each of us has had the experience of saying "Wow!I'm glad I decided to attend that gathering,I had a great time."Joy came to us because we made the decision to take part!
I am in the midst of my "process of life" where my body is causing me to make decisions that have the potential to rob me of "joy"situations.I,along with many others who care for and love me continue to pray for receiving God's healing on my body.I am a blessed man!I have written in an earlier letter how our afflictions can become a blessing by allowing our faith in God to raise us up to see the big picture;our earthly mortality versus our eternal soul life with Him. The purpose of this letter is to share the joy that can come in the least likely places.
Toni and I had our first chemo treatment last Wednesday,an 8 hour event.There are 22 reclining chairs in the "treatment"room ,people come and go,all ages,some healthier than others,however,all with one thing in common;cancer.I am an observer by nature,and to pass time ,I observed personalities/attitudes of the patients,nurses,visitors,etc.A patient by the name of Bob was in the chair close to mine and I knew from the conversation with the nurse that this was his first treatment and he was nervous and somewhat fearful,in spite of his attempt at humor the nurse was very "standoffish" and "curt".At a point in time I started a conversation with Bob and offered him 1/2 of my sandwich[he was by himself and didn't bring anything to eat or drink,the treatment is long and certainly no picnic:)]The point is,because we started to laugh and "share",both of us experienced joy from each other.I found out later from the nurse,as she was changing my IV,that her attitude was negative for two reasons,2 of her favorite patients had died and she was "burnt out"from not having a day off.Once she unburdened herself to me,surprising me, when I asked her an innocent question "Are you OK?"her light of goodness came flowing from her and she became a joy to me and the other patients;she also shared that she was a "born again" Christian and this particular day was so unlike her.I am amazed that sometime in the most negative of circumstances,that joy can be found if we just reach out and look for it.
I am thinking now of the spiritual joy that God brings in to our heart when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior;when I am lower than low,when I've reached bottom,when I don't know where to turn,THERE HE IS,bringing me the greatest joy known to man!By His grace I am Healed!I know there isn't any greater joy than this truth from Him;NEVER to leave me!!I/We are His creation,I am sure HIS joy is great when We CHOOSE HIM!
Until next time,look for the joy possibilities in all your circumstances,after all,God IS in control,with Christian love,Joe

I Want To Be Just Like?

Greetings,
How many of us remember the commercial "I want to be just like Mike"?This commercial had to do with Michael Jordan,the basketball player,and because of his basketball skills we should desire to be just like him.
I've been refining my thought process through the years and have come to the conclusion that In my truly younger years ,even though I was not aware of it ,I wanted to be just like my dad,further more,my mother was the standard for what a woman should be.Let's see if I can "flesh out" why most of us end up with many of the positive/negative traits of our parents.I will start from our birth beginning;most of us have had a typical child hood;nurtured and raised by our birth mother and father.Our parents met most of our needs from the time we were born until the time we leave their home and "strike out" on our own,oops,that could be a Freudian slip!!I have concluded that our parents are the"adult" foundation we want to emulate as we grow into our own adult life.You might ask why is that?My opinion follows;my dad was the first adult male in my life;at some point in my cognitive brain activity,I thought he represented what a man was supposed to act like with his neighbors,relatives and friends,how a father treated and loved his children,how a husband loved and treated his wife.The same is true regards my mother,what a woman was supposed to be as a wife and a mother.I ask you to pause reading this letter now and concentrate on this last paragraph.Can you "see"the influence your parents have had on you, as an adult, because they were the first "grown ups" in your life?I wonder how much better a parent we would have been or can be, if we looked at ourselves through the eyes of our children!I am not writing a letter to cast aspersions on my parents, that all my flaws as an adult rests on their shoulders;what I AM saying is ;if we as adults would recognize more consistently that our children are watching and emulating what we do in the most formative time of their life perhaps we would change some of our actions and decisions in that light.
The writing of this letter started from the experience I have had coaching and refereeing basketball in our church's "Upward Basketball" program.This is a Christian program for boys and girls using basketball and cheer leading as a tool to bring children and family's' the word and love of God.The children are taught the basics of playing basketball,cheer leading skills and teamwork involved,also ,how to develop a "Christ Like" attitude.Passages from the Bible are learned with the goal of the child learning who God is and that Jesus died on the cross for all of us .The family of each child is asked to participate in all aspects of the program.What a blessing this program has been for me,and a further recognizing of the impact we adults can and do have on our children.To "bottom line"this letter 'Upward" has reminded me ,once again,that ALL of us need to be more "CHRIST LIKE" in our dealings with our fellow man,and particularly ,with our children and young adults in our life.Remember,they are watching us and looking to emulate!WHO DO YOU WANT YOUR CHILD TO BE JUST LIKE?
Until next time,remember,God is with us always,are we emulating Jesus in our thoughts and actions?with Christian love,Joe

I Was Arrogant In My Ignorance Of God's Word

Greetings,
I can remember the setting very well.I was attending church ,this was a between service Bible study,approximately 10 years ago.The conversation had to do with why some people are healed and some are not;after a period of time ,with no resolution to the question,I said ,and I quote"I am much more likely to pray for healing of the sickness of my soul from sin than I am from disease of my body,our earthly life is going to end,our spiritual life is forever".This statement sounded good at the time,however,I WAS ARROGANT IN MY IGNORANCE.Let's fast forward to the present and my diagnosis of cancer.This medical condition became the definitive moment in "yours truly" studying the word in the Bible in ascertaining God's immaculate word on the subject of prayer for physical healing.I have written a previous letter regards praying entitled "I Didn't Know How To Pray",you can find it by scrolling through older posts.My purpose for today is to simply explain how I didn't give equal credit regarding physical healing, as compared to my spiritual healing.That credit is;I quote from the book of Exodus23:25,26"I will take sickness away from the midst of thee....The number of thy days I will fulfill"Psalm 102:24 "Take me not away in the midst of my days" and Exodus15V26 "If you listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His eyes,if you pay attention to His commands and keep all His decrees,I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians,for I am the Lord who heals you "Through Biblical teaching I knew that Jesus's death on the cross opened the gate for our salvation by our receiving Him into our "changed heart",asking forgiveness of our sins and declaring Him as our Lord and Savior, we would spend eternity in Heaven with God the Father,Jesus the Son,and the Holy Spirit as a "Born Again"Christian.F.F.Bosworth in his book"Christ The Healer"asks this question:"Has not every believer the same redemptive right to call upon Christ as Jehova-Rapha[The Healer of his body]as he has to call upon Him as Jehova-Tsidkenu[The Healer of his soul]?Is not His name given for healing as well as it is for salvation?
We can and must have 100% faith that Jesus's death on the cross "healed"our sin diseases.Perhaps we are less than 100% sure He Healed our physical body diseases because of lack of study of His word on physical healing.In the new testament, referring to the book of John14v12-14, the writer says "I tell you the truth ,anyone WHO HAS FAITH in me will do what I have been doing He will do even greater things than these ,because I am going to the Father .And I will do WHATEVER YOU ASK IN MY NAME ,so that the Son may bring glory to the Father .You may ask me for ANYTHING in my name and I WILL DO IT".I would suggest you read and STUDY the following book on physical healing ,"Christ The Healer" by F.F.Bosworth.This book lays out a concise thought process using specific Biblical passages to support the fact that God WILL heal our bodies if/when we reach the criteria He has set for us.
I didn't know why some people are healed and some are not,prior to my study. I'm continuing to seek enlightenment,as I use His guide for us,the Bible.I ask you to find out for yourself, by doing a Bible study on His Word from the Biblical perspective.
In closing ,I know the doctor doesn't understand how my pathology report came back negative for cancer in my throat when he knows he didn't get all of it when he operated in Nov. of 2009.Good news!The bad news; there is new cancer growth in my neck.I believe,as my son Joe says "the devil doesn't give up"and maybe my faith was only 75% that God would heal me,I know I had some doubts from time to time.How about a partial healing?I'm starting over and redoubling my efforts to study His word and believe what He said "Ask ANYTHING in My name and I will do it"None of us should be "ARROGANT IN OUR IGNORANCE"
Until next time,God bless each of you on your walk towards Him,Joe

No One Could Love Me/Us More Than This!

Greetings,
In my last letter I referred to how much God must love us;by creating a human being with a "free will".I would like to expand on that thought.Think of you/me having the power to create a "something "that you have complete control over how that "something" comes out.Let's focus on what we would definitely want from our creation.Here are some thought starters:
.Loyalty,that is ,to do whatever I/we demanded without question.
.24/7 availability[I/we never know when we might need something.
.Always saying,your right,no matter what we do.
I would like you to take a few minutes and think of your creation and add to the list.
I am thinking of the movie "Stepford Wives" the concept was that the men in Stepford,Connecticut didn't appreciate their wives "free will" so they created a robot wife, to replace their human wife, that was PERFECT to their needs about everything they desired!I would venture to say wouldn't that be true for most of us,to create a "something"that does exactly what we want,when we want it?Wow!What a concept;as the song goes"What's love got to do with it?"
Now THAT question brings me to our creator God,love has EVERYTHING to do with His creating us!Think of a Creator that through His love for us ,He gave us a "free will",wanting us to reciprocate His love for us,by us choosing to love Him as much as He loved us[Impossible]knowing full well that so many of His creation would do just the opposite[turn away from Him]starting with the very first;Adam and Eve!God says in the book of Genesis"Let us make man in our image,in our likeness"The Lord took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it,and the Lord God commanded the man,"You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,for when you eat of it you will surely die."Now here we have the first "Love "commandment,isn't God saying ,choose me or suffer the consequences;in other words ,I give you everything because I love you,now choose to love me,by not doing this one thing.As an aside,people can say God knew what Adam and Eve were going to do,let's talk about predestination!I say ,true He DID know what they were going to do,however,let's remember FREE WILL,Adam and Eve made the decision ON THEIR OWN!Over and over again in the Bible, God showed His love,compassion and patience with His creation.He loves us so much He warns us every time about the consequences,if we don't choose Him;all the way through the book of revelation.Some people would say how could your God be so mean,look at the terrible things He says He is going to do!I say ,look how much He loves us,to warn us of the dire consequences of going against His word.What child could ask anymore from a loving parent?By the way,when was the last time the devil told you what was going to happen to you if you followed him?
I would like you to consider that no human being could ever love you more than our Creator.How quickly would any of us have our only child put to death for the common good?God asks us to have faith in Him through His Son Jesus,isn't it also true that He created us because He had faith in His beloved creation?
Until next time,with Christian love,Joe

This Won't Take Long---Did It!

Hi All,
My family and I just returned from the marriage of my oldest granddaughter,Lyndsay.The ceremony was beautiful and joyous,Lyndsay's father,my son Joe,an ordained minister married Lyndsay and Billy in an outside gorgeous New England "Fall" setting.I was so joyful in watching my son walk his firstborn down the beautiful stone path towards me,where I had the honor of asking "Who gives my Granddaughter to this man?",where upon my son and I changed places and he "wed" the 2 people into "One flesh"according to God's word.
I reflected during part of that day how quickly the days of my life and it's experiences have taken place;it seems like only yesterday I was holding Lyndsay in my arms as a new born.I can remember my mother saying to me ,when she was 88 years old ,how her life had past "Like the blink of an eye",isn't it true of all of us,when we reach a certain age in our life that we come to the same realization? As I approach the Fall/Winter of my life I find myself wondering if I truly enjoyed with a completely full and joyous heart all the blessings God has bestowed on me in my earthly walk.This letter is not meant to be a dissertation on how I missed the "all I could be" in the happiness area of my life,however,it IS to share the new dimension of seeing life's experiences once God enters into my/your life.
God put it on our heart to search Him out.I know in my life,no matter how "the world" perceived me and my earthly success,there was a vague "somethings missing" following me around in the bosom of my inner heart.I quote from my mother,once again,"Put God first and all else will follow",I might add all peace will follow,life's experiences will be shared with your family and loved ones from a new eternal love perspective.The richness of our life will be enhanced, because we understand the reason for our existence is to use our free will to find our God and give Him the glory for creating us and that we choose His House forever .
I know for most of us when we attend a funeral or wedding the older members of the family invariably say "We only get together anymore for weddings or funerals" isn't that a sad commentary on all of us ;who better to share our everyday life and it's experiences with our immediate "blood" family as well as, our Church family.How many of our family is even going to church?Now that's another story!
I have written earlier letters on the blessings of my life and the wonderful tapestry woven throughout it by my shared experiences with family and friends.I ask you to reflect on this question:Are you "seeing"from your heart all the fullness life has to offer because you know the "real"reason for your existence and you found God and your putting Him first in all you do,including helping your loved ones to find the reason for their existence,to choose Jesus as their Lord and Savior?We are commanded to love one another,what better way than being a disciple for our God in Heaven"No greater love has man ,then giving up his life for another"I might suggest we also show greater love to man when helping "save"another by leading other people to God through our Christian walk with Him.
In closing,please remember"This life won't take long---Did it"!so enjoy the time you have left,sharing your love of God with all those that are part of your life's experiences.Until next time,Joe

Upon Further Review!

Greetings all,
We are approaching the middle of "Upon further review season",in other word's ;football season!
I was thinking of how changed our life would be if we could review all our decisions and change the ones that didn't turn out the way we expected.Remember the movie"It's A Wonderful Life" with James Stewart?He played "George"who ran a small town savings and loan inherited from his beloved father.Georges' uncle was very forgetful and misplaced the bank deposit,the town "bad guy"who owned the bank and wanted to own the whole town,and would have except for our hero George,found the money and kept it so George couldn't balance his books in time for the audit which would ruin George and his savings and loan company.George decides it would be better if he had never been born;God grants his wish,and the balance of the movie shows George the consequences of his never been born.A few of them were:his wife lived her life as a spinster,his children were never born,his younger brother[whom George saved from drowning when they were children]drowned because George wasn't there to save him,the "all American"city became a loose town with cheap housing,wild women,drunken men,etc.etc.all because George was not there with his goodness,generosity of heart,and fairness towards all people.After George experienced this "UPON FURTHER REVIEW"he begged God to please bring him back into this world,he realized how his being born and the experiences in his life intertwined with so many other people.
The purpose of this letter is to cause you ,particularly,if your going through difficult times and you might wish everyone in your life would be better off if you were never born,and you wouldn't have to go through your trial by fire,to think of the consequences[as George was able to see of that wish].
Lets enter our Almighty God into our picture,He loved us so much that He gave us a "free will"to make all our decisions in this earthly life,and guess what?We don't have to have a "UPON FURTHER REVIEW"because the poor"sin" decisions we make in our life are forgiven immediately; as we ask for forgiveness from our Almighty God"As far as the east is to the west,never to be brought up again"We praise and thank you Almighty God!
One of my Christian brothers told several of us about his Aunt that used to say "I'm a sinner saved by grace",one day he disagreed and said "I happen to sin,I've been saved by grace"do you see the subtle difference?A sinner is not willing to change his/her "sin"decisions;they are not walking with God.A person with a heart change toward God knows when they have turned away from Him[We are convicted!],we are filled with remorse,isn't it a wonderful thing to know God NEVER leaves us,and is always ready to forgive us and bring us back into His fold.
In closing since God Himself doesn't have a "UPON FURTHER REVIEW" once He forgives us,why would you want to wallow in your past mistakes,or not have the faith of His love for you to know He is always with you no matter what your going through.We all need to remember we are His children,He created us,He is with us always.Amen!
Until next time ,may God continue to bless you on your walk towards Him,Joe

Did You Have A Choice To Be Born?Do You Have A Choice To NOT Die?

Greetings,
Wow! those two questions are pretty simple to answer.No you didn't and no you don't!Let's see if we can make a letter of compelling thought around these two truths'.We will start our letter with two more questions.
We came into this world kicking,when we leave this world will we still be kicking about the fact we're leaving it?and the bigger question; if we are ,why?
Let's start addressing our questions by talking about birth.What a traumatic experience leaving the warm,floating in water, perfectly comfortable environment for our little bodies,being "hooked up"to a tube[umbilical cord]that brings oxygen and nutrients through our blood to keep us alive.Imagine the wonder of it all,floating around,being fed,no responsibilities,all of a sudden,this environment changes to one of breaking water,what happened to my hot tub?,no breathing tube,I never even knew I had lungs!,a smack on my butt to get my lungs started,by the way while hanging upside down,not only that ,there's about a 25 degree difference in temperature from where I've been for nine months[LOWER]I'm cold,where's the blanket?/No wonder I'm screaming!I believe we can all understand coming into this world with out a smile on our face after experiencing this "birth"kind of trauma.Welcome to the real world!
Now let's try and answer the question of why would we leave this world kicking?Didn't we take the time to find the truth about our physical death leading to our spiritual life for all eternity with our Creator God?Didn't we take the time to find the love of our Creator that sets in all our hearts?Don't we know His Son's name who died on the cross for our sins? A name above all names;Jesus!The great news is;It's not too late!Take action!Find the truth that will give you peace when that last day of your earthly life arrives,and it will,probably sooner than you think.Don't take the chance of having to have your kicking boots on,as opposed to wearing the cloak of His immaculate love that will guide you through the valley of darkness of your earthly life to the light of heaven in your eternal soul life.
Find the truth,Jesus said "I am the way ,the truth and the life only through Me will you see My Father".I am amazed at how much time we will take to ensure the house we buy is the "right"one,the car we buy is the "right"one,the spouse we choose is the "right"one,there are so many decisions that we want to be "right"in our life,but the single most important one having to do with our eternal life seems so hap hazard to so many!God through His love for each of us,will give us ample opportunity to find Him;all we have to do is listen to His quiet voice inside of us and take action!He's waiting for us to choose Him and live with Him in heaven for all of eternity.
As the song goes"These boots were made for walking"make sure your boots aren't kicking to stay where you can't ,but walking toward Him for eternity.
Until next time,God bless all of you on your journey,Joe

"I Used To Be Somebody,But Now I Am Somebody Else"

Greetings all,
While I was doing my walking/jogging exercises this morning,I was listening to the sound track from"Crazy Heart" the movie.One of the songs started out with the title of this letter.I played the song over a few times and thought how appropriate a title for my life;"I Used To Be Somebody,But Now I Am Somebody Else".Let me explain.
I was born into a family of 7 children ,I learned fairly quickly that being independent was going to serve me much better than not.The independence slowly turned from a positive to a negative as I grew older. I thought I could do things by myself with out too much input from those closest to me.I made a lot of observations of other people,whom I considered worldly successful, and tried to emulate them for my own success.Certainly these people were "teachers"to me,whether they knew it or not.Using these observations my thought was,I knew best the direction of my family with out much opinion from anyone in it[including my wife].Bear in mind,this included NOT asking for,or listening to God's word BEFORE I made my decisions.I thought I was doing fine until that day that I accepted Jesus in my heart,Isn't it amazing how in an instant you know that God was always with you ,wanting you to choose His love and His truth in your life,over your selfish ,earthly led decisions.I quote from scripture:Matthew chapter 16 V26"What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his soul"I can tell you for a fact,that when you bring God into your heart,people around you can/will see the change in your words,as well as,actions.My decision making went from one of me to one of Him!My mother always said "Put God first and all the rest will follow".I should have been spiritually smart enough to realize the wisdom of that sentence many years before I actually did,however,when your not walking with God in your heart you cannot see the spiritual simplicity of His word!
I am thankful that God has allowed me to live long enough to "get it".I would ask each of you to look at the history of your life so far,did "You used to be somebody,but now your somebody else"?and if you are somebody else ,is it because you "got it" and God is in the forefront of your life leading you to everlasting eternity with Him?
Until next time ,with Christian love,Joe

Who Are The People Changers?

Hi All,
I was visiting today with our neighbors,and sharing how my affliction[diagnosis of cancer]had become a blessing to me in several ways:
.Bringing me closer to God's Word.
.Sharing the name and love of our Lord Jesus as our Savior
.sharing many thoughts on cancer's treatment options.
.suggesting to people to make an INFORMED decision ,not TOTALLY relying on so called experts,of course praying to God for guidance.[I suggest this should be first on the list.]
Later on in the day I was thinking of all the people I've met,from the doctors,nurses,other patients, to the books written by authors who had lost loved ones to this disease,or had been diagnosed themselves, and searched for alternative treatments.
My point in this letter is to share with you that all of these folks are "People Changers";having said that,have you ever had a "People Changer" in your life?
I coined this phrase many years ago when I was doing motivational talks for various groups that were kind enough to ask me to share some of my life's experiences.
You must be asking what is a "People Changer"?;simply stated,it's a person that alters the decision you were going to make,even the course of your life by their input.Let me give you one,of many examples I have in my life.Many years ago ,when I was going to marry my first wife Diane,her Aunt Eve told me there was an opening at the JCPenney store and I should apply for the job.She told me to wear my best suit{Hello! I only had one!I was 20 yrs.old at the time.},fill out an application and ask to see the manager and tell him why he should hire me.35 years later I retired after a rewarding career with the Penney company.Aunt Eve was a "People Changer" for me!,bearing in mind ,if it wasn't for her ,I would never had gone to the Penney store.She literally changed my life's direction!I want you to reflect on your own life's experiences,I know without a doubt,you have had one or more "People Changers" in your life.The teachers/professors we have had certainly had the potential to change your vocational choices however,there is someone else that has changed your life's direction;they didn't think of themselves as a "People Changer",and I dare say, neither did you at the time.I want you to think hard,by the way,it could be a negative change,someone may have said something very negative to you and you changed course ,and now you have regrets,hopefully not,but it is part of life.Now that you realize you have had such a person in your life, the single biggest point of this letter is for each of us to realize we are all"People Changers",think of the influence you have on your children,spouse,family,friends,even strangers,by what we say or do and how we say or do it!You may not think this is true,however,sharing your life's experiences, good and bad, has the potential to change someone else's life.
I suggest that being a "People Changer" is a major part of our life's walk!I don't care what your station in life is.
Please reflect on this view point,I am sure you will see that this is so!
Until next time ,go out and change someone's life for the better!
With Christian love,Joe

Your Preparing For What?

Hi All,
I've been thinking this morning about all the things in our life we prepare for;some examples:
.Our 1st day of school
.our first school test
.Our 1st date
Our High School Graduation
.Our attending College
.Our Marriage
The list goes on and on,however ,in all our preparation how much time do we spend preparing for eternity?I maintain the single most important question to ask and find the truth of;IS THERE A GOD? If so,who is He/Her/It?and,how do I ensure my knowing Him/Her/It and spending a long,long,long time with Him/Her/It? We are going to spend eternity somewhere;the atheist believes the same place as before he/she was born,the agnostic"wherever",all others, with the God,spiritual entity they believe in.My intention today is not to list all the "God Beliefs"that are in our world,but,to suggest a starting point in answering that question of; HOW PREPARED ARE YOU FOR ETERNITY?
It's amazing to think that of all the human beings born into the world, only ONE said "I AM GOD",only one predicted He would come back from the dead and did it! That would be JESUS CHRIST of Nazareth.I contend you can save yourself a lot of time in your search in preparing for eternity by finding out if Jesus was telling the truth,or was He lying.My point is to start our search with the person who stated the most OUTRAGEOUS statement known to mankind"I AM GOD",who does He think He is??Exactly!I might suggest the Bible to be your first source for enlightenment,since God said "If you want to know Me,know my word"
I also,recommend Josh McDowell's"A Ready Defense For Christianity"His book is a research on all things that can be proven about the birth and life of Jesus and,like the Bible, how faith is the key to understanding all things beyond our human understanding.
I know my letter doesn't amount to a scintilla of anything on this subject;just a suggested starting point,however,let's all agree that when someone asks you "WHAT ARE YOU PREPARING FOR"shouldn't our answer be"I'm preparing for eternity?"
May God continue to bless you on your walk towards Him
with Christian love,Joe

The Power To Walk Away ;The Power To Walk Toward

Hi All,
Today is a beautiful sunny day, with low humidity in S.West Fla. I just finished my 1 hour walk in the neighborhood.I was thinking about my "route" to take and started to reflect on the power that sits within each of us in determining the "WALK TOWARD OR AWAY FROM"decisions we make in our life.Upon reflection,every decision I made in my life,good or bad,was my responsibility and no others,my "free will"you might say.My blaming a bad decision on someone else has it's beginning all the way back to the time of Adam and Eve,remember the forbidden fruit?"She made me do it".
I can even say that part of the reason I have cancer is from the food and drink choices I made throughout my life;it is true I was ignorant to a great degree, on the adverse affects of sugar,preservatives and chemicals added to my food, and the later ramifications of those choices on my body;however,doesn't that bring home the responsibility we have to make an INFORMED decision!I find it interesting that even though I share the FACTS of what I have found out concerning the foods we put in our body, and how they are causing the United States Of America citizens to have more cancer,heart attacks and diabetes than any other country in the world,my family and friends who perceive themselves to be healthy nod their heads and continue to eat and drink exactly as before.The motto is "I'm sorry for you and glad it's not me",however, like many things in our life we don't want to walk towards healthy living by making the necessary changes in our eating habits to cause a positive change in our bodies.
I have found the same to be true in my spiritual walk.I WALKED AWAY FROM GOD every time I decided to WALK TOWARDS THE DEVIL to satisfy my sinful nature!Man,could I find excuses!To a great degree, isn't that the story of our life,the struggle to WALK TOWARDS GOD AND WALK AWAY FROM THE DEVIL?
Wouldn't you agree,the choices of what we put in our bodies should be based on the facts of the ramifications of that choice, then we accept the consequences good or bad.It is so true of our spiritual choices;God wants us to WALK TOWARDS HIS HOUSE,God wants us to choose Him.I/We might consider to remember this:
.Sin is selfish;God is selfless
.The devil hates us;God loves us.
.The devil wants us with him-eternal damnation.
.God wants us with Him-eternal salvation.
In closing,CHOOSE GOD'S HOUSE!
Until next time,God bless all of you on your journey towards Him,Joe

What Is Time Tithing?

Hi All,
Is your boat/car your God?Is your money your God?Is your house your God?Are there other objects or activities that are your God?Let me explain.Most Christians know what financial tithing means:10% of all income to be given to the Lord.
"Time Tithing"is; do we give at least ten percent of our time to God?By the way,what a pitiful percent!However,don't be hasty to judge your time as being more than that!Let's review the available time we have in our life to do whatever we want.[By the way,this lesson of time spent was put on my heart several years ago when I was reviewing my spiritual walk compared to my earthly walk.]There are 24 hours in a day,most people work 8 hours a day 5 days a week, leaving 8 hours to sleep and 8 hours to do whatever we want.8 hours times 5 =40 hours Monday through Friday to do whatever we want.On the weekend we still have 8 hours to sleep each day leaving 16 hours each of these 2 days to do whatever we want.Stay with me;the math shows us that we have 72 hours each week to do whatever we want;if your retired you can add time to the equation, this is all about the use of our "free"time.If you go to church on Sunday,let's allow 2 hours to the Lord;that is, 1 hour to get to church and 1 hour for the service;I am being very generous!Let's do the same if you attend a week day service,2 hours to the Lord,and the same if you attend a weekly Bible study,2 hours to the Lord.Further, let's give ourselves 2 hours per week of personal prayer time.Now we will add up our time spent with the Lord;2hours Sunday,2 hours weekday service,2 hours Bible study,2 hours personal prayer time,for a grand total of 8 hours per week,IF YOU ARE DOING ALL OF THE ABOVE!!72 hours in each week to do whatever we want, 8 hours of actual time with the Lord=approximately 11.5 % of our available"free" time with the Lord.Now don't get too tied up in the math,I know God put this on my heart for me,however,ask yourself these questions:
.Do I go to church every Sunday?
.Do I attend a week day church service?
.Do I take part in a weekly Bible study?
.Do I spend personal prayer time with God?
God wanted me to compare my time with Him, to my time with the T.V.,fiction reading,outside activities,etc.etc.You/I can't be with God if we're watching/doing worldly things that have nothing to do with His word.
God says to pray and seek His face all the time.In other words;see Him and glorify Him in all you do.Is it God 10%,20%,30% 40% etc.I picture ,at judgement day,how I will feel when God asks"My son ,how much time did you give Me in the time you had available?"Think in your mind of looking at the face of God and------you pick your percent,then think of the feeling in your heart of your answer,is it one of joy?or one of OhOh?God wants us to choose His house.Think of how many times we decide not to be with Him,instead,we choose our earthly "gods".
The lesson for me,after this analysis ,was to recognize very quickly ,that my God was NOT the God of the Bible ,but the many earthly pleasure"god's" I had available in my earthly walk.
I hope your not where I was in your life,however,once again,if my weaknesses can strengthen you in seeing what you need to do to grow in your spirituality,than all glory to God!
Until next time ,God bless you,Joe

The Love Of A Brother/The Love Of A Father

Hi All,
Yesterday I went to the "Forest" to spend the afternoon sitting in a lawn chair, at the beach on the shores of Lake Huron, in my home town.A little background is necessary;I used to own a cottage in the Forest,thanks to my good friend Martha,who lived in the development, and told me about the "cute little house" for sale on her street.I bought it, had it renovated by another childhood friend Chuck O'Mara, including wiring,electric,turning the one car garage into living space with gas heater,you know,the things to make it comfortable for year round living.The total living area was only 800 sq.ft.,however,it was a terrific getaway in the winter,and a wonderful summer home, with the further blessing of having my family and friends close at hand.
I owned the home from 1995 to 1999,at which time I sold it to my younger brother Mike.The purpose of this letter is to share with you the background for the sale to my brother and how, up until yesterday,11 years later, I finally became peaceful over the sale and recognized the love of my brother for his son and family.
Mike was living in a bungalow on our brother Raymond's property, also on Lake Huron.I know Mike enjoyed being with Ray,however, the home was smaller than "the cute little house",didn't have a bedroom ,and was not well insulated.My blessings were many, I had a beautiful home in Findlay,Ohio,had purchased a condominium in Florida and owned the "cute little house"in the Forest.I thought how selfish of me to have so much,why don't I sell my "cute little house" to Mike,who was by himself at the time,for exactly what I had invested in the house,and "throw in" the furniture,in other words,bring your tooth brush and enjoy! Mike accepted the offer and was delighted in living there.[I love Mike ,that was the whole reason to sell the place to him,otherwise I wouldn't have sold it to anyone, a perfect arrangement]
The next thing I know,Mike sells the home to HIS son Mike,I'm thinking ,if he was going to do that,I should have kept the home!That thought always came up in my heart every time I visited Port Huron in the summer;until yesterday!I'm amazed how God will tell us the truth if we take the time to listen.Hear this,I knew that I did what I did through love for my brother,BUT,I NEVER thought of the love Mike had for his son and family,to give up his place through love,so his son could live more comfortably with his family!In other words,the selling of the "cute little house" was a BLESSING to Mike and his family,NOT something for me to regret;what an epiphany,11 years later!
In closing ,as you go down your road of life,remember,some things you view as a negative are in reality, a positive,maybe not in your mind,but in GOD'S HEART!
Until next time,God bless,Joe

Did I Appreciate Her Enough?

Hi All,
As you know,I have been visiting with my family in Michigan for the last 3 weeks.My time has been focused on my 50 yr. class reunion and 2 weddings involving a nephew and a cousin,along with great laughter and sharing with my wife and family as we stay at my sister Kathy's and her husband Bob's house..Tonight I decided to go over to my brother-in -law's home for a swim in his pool.My younger sister Ann,to whom my brother-in -law Mike was married ,passed away very suddenly this past February.As it happened, he wasn't home and I had the pool to myself and some quiet time for reminiscing about Ann.I found myself reflecting on all the things my sister meant to me in my life;and now to the crux of this letter,did I appreciate the core of what she was as a fellow human being enough?Bear in mind I'm NOT talking about ALL she was,not the pimples,but the true goodness of her "core" heart.Ann was the steady beat of her marriage's heart,the reason for so many family gatherings at their house,the "words of wisdom"always being asked of her by the female members,family and friends. [We men rarely ask for anyone to glimpse our doubts,fears,etc]the "lets get it done"attitude,the number of times she was asked to be "Godmother"to family ,as well as,friend's children,the confidence shown by her clients[she owned a styling salon for many years]in sharing very personal information knowing she wouldn't betray their trust.
Ann NEVER said no to any one that asked for her help,her being was one of total giving.
I wonder how many of us concentrate on that special difference of the heart of those that are part of our walk in life;certainly to include those closest to us,spouses,siblings,aunts,uncles,cousins,friends,etc.Compared to how many times we focus on the "flaws" and gossip about the perceived weaknesses,what a waste of our time and the missing of seeing the core heart of those who truly reflect,during most of their life,love as God demanded"love your neighbor as yourself".
I miss my sister and tonight I shed a few tears because of her passing,and am comforted with great faith that she is with our Father in Heaven.In closing,can't we all learn to accept and enjoy the goodness of those that love us 100% of the time and not be bothered by their human frailties,by the way, we all possess weaknesses.
I know Ann knew how much I loved her,I am only thinking of the time wasted by not seeing what she was so ready to offer me if I had only looked for it 100% of the time.
Until next time,God bless all of you,Joe

I Didn't Know How To Pray!

Hi All,
I want to talk about or better yet,to think about prayer and the steps needed on our part for God to hear us.I am continuing to learn how to pray in faith through God's word of truth NEEDING TO KNOW HIS WORD OF TRUTH !
I find it so amazing that all my/your questions regarding God's heart and thought process is readily available to us in His God breathed word,the Bible.For most of my life I prefaced my prayer requests with the phrase"If It be your will"when I was diagnosed with cancer, God led me to find out what His will was/is regarding prayer requests.I quote from 2Chronicles chp.7v14"If my people which are called by my name,shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face,and TURN FROM THEIR WICKED WAYS then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land"When did saying "I will pray for you "become so trite?;not in the thought of praying,but the standard of God's word in your heart.Let me explain;God's word says"turn away from your wicked ways"How many of us pray and then go back to the same "sins"Example:go back to my anger,my drugs,my alcohol,my homosexuality,my lying,my cheating,etc.,etc,you get the point,I get the point!God is NOT saying I/you will not sin again,He knows we are too weak;but,where is the HEART CHANGE to learn and study His word through the Bible and then start walking,in your heart,as a humble,seeking God's Face,turning from our wicked ways and then "I YOUR GOD WILL HEAR YOU AND WILL FORGIVE YOU"
I will continue to let God be specific on this subject from His Immaculate word.I quote from Psalms66V18:"If I regard iniquity in my heart,the Lord will not hear me"
I will use the following passage from Dakes Annotated Reference Bible:
"Regarding iniquity of the heart is the reason for many unanswered prayers,the writer says,If I had seen iniquity in my heart and encouraged it ;if I had pretended to be what I was not;and I had loved iniquity while I professed to pray and be sorry for my sin,the Lord would not have healed me.I would have been left with out His help and support in my time of trouble"SIN HINDERS FAITH ,AND LACK OF FAITH HINDERS ANSWERS.I am back to the beginning.I/We must know God's word in the foundation of our heart and have complete faith in them,causing a heart change, to have blessings and prayer answered.
There are many specific passages in the Bible on God's will in answering prayer for physical healing.See the following:
Exodus C23V25,26;Psalms 103;Psalms 107V20;Proverbs C4V22;Matthew C4V23-25;Matthew C9V35,36;Luke C6V17-19.There are many more references regards complete healing,as well as,ANYTHING YOU ASK IN JESUS'S NAME in the new testament;see John C14V12,13;Acts C28V9;James C5V14,15.
The point of this letter is,once again,for my journey of life to be a blessing to you by my sharing my experiences in my earthly/spiritual walk, led by God's immaculate truth as He has caused and blessed me in finding it through His word in the Bible.
Until next time,God bless all of you,Joe

Never To Be Duplicated

Hi All,
Have you ever considered the fact that of all the BILLIONS of people that have been born and died;and the cycle continues until the very end of this world as we know it,that there will NEVER be another YOU?God has created each of us as a once, never to be duplicated child of His!{My wife would say thank you Lord lol}I know that most of us don't think of ourselves in this light,however,reflect on the fact of this truth for a moment;YOU/ME WILL NEVER BE DUPLICATED!I ask you to think of the responsibility of your life wrapped around the reality of this statement.
God created a you and me and watched us make our "free will" decisions,always with unmeasureable love in His heart,but with great consternation and sadness when we walked away from Him.
I want us to think today about our legacy;what will we leave behind from our human/spiritual walk?Will we be remembered as a kind,patient,sharing,emulating Jesus human being,certainly with our weaknesses and flaws,but ,if someone were to sum up our life in a sentence or two what would it be ?When God put this thought on my heart that was when the change to Him came about.I concluded that my "sins"were always about my selfish needs 100% of the time!I just had to have, whatever it was NOW!I/We can SAY I love you to those around us;family and friends included,however,it's the DO that's the truth of our heart.
God knows we are going to fall down in this life,the question becomes,are we going to pick ourselves up,ask His foregiveness,grow spiritually from the experience, seek His Face,or continue to walk "on the dark side"?For many years I made so many excuses and justifications for my failures as a man,father,son,husband and friend,I could write a book![bear in mind,the truth of these sin's were hidden from everyone except between God and my heart}.
God says ,in the Bible ,that the greatest commandment is to love each other as He loves us;duh!if you truly love someone wouldn't the last thing you want to do is hurt them?I didn't stop loving the people I hurt in my life,my selfish needs proved I didn't love them enough to put their feelings first before mine got in the way!
In closing ,I would ask each of you to consider,what is going to be your legacy to those you leave behind,and what will our Father in heaven say to you in greeting you for all of eternity "job well done "or something that may cause you to go "OH,OH!
Until next time ,God bless each of you on this wonderful walk through this life,Joe

As my voice said hello,my heart was saying goodbye.

Hi All,
I attended my 50 year high school class reunion in Port Huron Michigan the weekend of July the 23rd.I shared the "Lady Huron"cruise on Thursday, from the St.Clair river to the mouth of Lake Huron and back; viewing the many changes of the shoreline of my home town.I relived memories of the time spent, at the various sites where my classmates and I "played" in our youth. Friday night we gathered at the Black River Country Club for an evening of socializing,reminiscing,eating and being entertained by one of our very talented classmates who led us with his piano and voice expertise in dancing and singing various songs from our time past,of course including our school song.Saturday we met for lunch at "The Pavilion" on St.Clair river and viewed a slide show from past reunions,along with a time of remembrance for those classmates who have "gone" before us.
I took some personal time,that day, to spend with one of my classmates and her husband to tour their new home on the lake.I am very happy for their good health,along with their families and the many blessings they have in their life.
How can I describe the joy in my heart,the "youth"brought back to my mind and body,if only for a weekend?I have known most of my classmates from the time I was 6 years old.Part of the foundation for what I was to become as a man was based on our shared experiences.
Think of all the physical,mental and spiritual growth we all go through from the time we are 6 years old through the time we are 17 years old;the being accepted or not,the physical growth changes[puberty],the bonding with other males,the attraction to that other gender "girls",the spiritual awakening,helped by our "Immaculate Heart of Mary" Nuns, that we were created by God,with my own questions of:what are His plans for me?,am I ready to listen?,where do I fit in the whole scheme of things?
I am sure that some of my classmates had,at least a fleeting thought that this reunion will be the last time we see some of those around us.I know my thought process regards my earthly mortality,as well as,my spiritual readiness has been enhanced since my diagnosis of cancer.My Friday evening was a kaleidiscope of sweet memories,the first day of school with it's fear of the unknown and experiences to come,the first date,the first kiss,the first rejection,the first "pick up" basketball game in the driveway,of my soon to be life long friends,the first dance lessons and holding a girl in your arms,the beach parties,the dances at the Y.M.C.A.,the "Deck"at Pine Grove Park,at the "Dome" in the north end of town,the "parking"at Lakeside beach with the current "love of my life",the weekend adventures with the "corporation"[my 3 best friends],the participation in the "Hornet"sports programs;to include track,football and basketball with it's great victories and bitter defeats;both as a team and individually,the unrealized personal potential from too much nervousness when given the chance;in other words,all of lifes experiences starting as a 6 year old to a 17 year old teenager.Most of the classmates I shared these times with were at the reunion and, in my own way,I relived their part in all of these things and thanked them in my heart for being part of the tapestry of my life.
I, like all of us,don't know what the future will hold,but I know God has blessed me with a rich and rewarding life surrounded by family and friends who love me.
I have chosen God's house,many years ago for the balance of my earthly walk and I thank Him for giving me these precious friends and the memories of times shared that always brings a warm smile to my face.
Until next time,God bless,Joe

If we are living each day as our last day;what does it matter how many days we have left?

Hi All,
I expect to get the results of my tests from the Doctor tomorrow.[For those of you who don't know,I was diagnosed with neck cancer in November of last year]My first two tests,over a period of 7 months, have come back negative for "live" cancer cells.All glory to God!
I have the philosophy that,for most of us, no matter our age,if you perceive yourself as "healthy" with a few aches and pains,you do not have the same note of urgency about the time limits you have left in your mortal life,as when the Doctor says "you have cancer"or "you have 3 months to live" or "there's nothing more we can do for you"
I realize we all know we are going to die,however,wouldn't you agree there are some statements ,as above,that brings the truth of our mortality to the forefront of our brains' thought process.I like to say, prior to my diagnosis,I thought I was walking with God,now I am RUNNING towards God;it didn't make me a bad person,I AM a born again practicing my faith in God the Father,Son Jesus as my Savior,and the Holy Ghost living within me,the point being WAS I LIVING MY LIFE EACH DAY AS IF IT WAS GOING TO BE MY LAST?The answer is NO!Come with me now and I will tell you why my answer is NO.I will only give you a few of my weaknesses,otherwise this letter becomes a book.
I tend to be:
.impatient,controlling,selfish to my needs,I listen less and talk more,in other words"What about me"!
I have been aware of these failings, and many more, and have been working on them from the foundation of God's love for me through His word for many years.I know I am a better Christian man in my 60's then I was in my 50's,then my 40's etc.,however,the bell tolls,I can see my mortality through the diagnosis of cancer.
The rubber has hit the road,how strong is my faith in what Jesus said,John 11:25,26"I am the resurrection and the life.Those who believe in me ,even though they die like everyone else,will live again.They are given eternal life for believing in me and will never perish.Do you believe this,Martha?"Isn't this the most important question of our entire life?My answer to Jesus is YES!
My life has changed in the following ways since the diagnosis:
God is first,all the rest follows.
I am taking one day at a time.
I am more "Spiritually minded"
I don't sweat the small stuff;it's all small stuff
I appreciate and share the love I have for my family and friends,even more than the past,my actions as well as,words.
When I feel the devil bringing fear to my heart on my earthly death,I tell him to leave;I have chosen God's house[see John 11:25,26 above]
In closing ,please use my life's experience concerning my mortal walk ,to help you "truly"live as if,today is your last day on earth.
With Christian love,Joe

PS.A big thanks to Pastor Goss for his teachings today!

When do our afflictions become a blessing?

Hi All,
I was "Skypeing"[free voice and video on the internet],with a relative yesterday,and he was sharing with me how depressed he was because of the pain he was having from the physical therapy on his surgically repaired shattered ankle;furthermore, he was concerned with how much of an effect the damaged ankle would have on his ability to continue the mission work he felt God has called him to do.
This particular relative has a special place in my heart and I felt terrible for him.We discussed the faithfulness of God and how God can heal his ankle and continue to show him the way to full-fill God's plan for his life.We agreed prayer was in order and faithfulness from us in relying on God's word.
During our conversation ,my relative mentioned a church member whom he had not seen at the latest church service.The reason he was concerned is,she has been in a wheel chair,because of polio,for the last 50 years,since she was a young adult.My relative thought it was possible she didn't have transportation to church;he called her and reminded her that he was always available to give her a ride.
You may be wondering where I'm going with this,stay with me lol.
The natural progression of my relative and my conversation was to discuss the Christian attitude, positive and cheerful demeanor of a woman who has been in a wheel chair for the vast majority of her life.Little did she know that "HER AFFLICTION BECAME A BLESSING TO MY RELATIVE"His problems with his ankle became so trivial compared to her lifelong trial.
The lesson becomes,when affliction comes into our life do we allow it to become a blessing to those around us,simply by the way we handle it?God didn't say He would take us around the fire, He said He would take us THROUGH the fire.Darkness comes to all of us ,in one form or another, it is then that we make the decision to give it to our God,or wallow in our misery.
People in our lives are always watching us,how we react to our experiences,negative and positive,are you a blessing to help someone else see the working of your faith in God in your life?or,just another poor soul overwhelmed with life's trials and tribulations without a spiritual foundation to know that God is always with you.
Until next time,with Christian love,Joe

What do people see of me through their eyes?

Hi All,
I want to share another of my life's experience with you today.This experience happened at a weekly Bible Study that a group of us Christian men have been having for the past several years.We have become very open with each other through the years as we discussed,not only God's word,but every day happenings in each of our lives.Trusting each other would be the correct word,also we mentor each other as we found out that "Man" thoughts run rampant within each of us;in other words,we are only unique as men to women,not men to men.
I technicolor[give you background] to lay the foundation for how this learning experience happened.In my mind,"A SPIRITUAL EYE OPENER".
Our discussion,that day was centered on the fact that, because of our poor economy in Lee County it had adversely affected several of us;one of our members had been looking for a job for over a year ,with no results,even after several sit down interviews.He then said,I quote"I feel as if God has abandoned me"I was immediately hit with such an overpowering emotion that it brought tears to my eyes and I said;IF YOU COULD SEE YOURSELF THROUGH MY EYES,you would know He hasn't left you ,because I see God in your actions,words and how you have remained faithful in praising His goodness towards you!The Holy Spirit put it on my heart to go around the room and share with each man there that if they could see themselves through my eyes they would know that I was a far better Christian because of each of their impact on my Christian walk.
I reflected on that Friday morning for several weeks and the Holy Spirit continued to refine the experience until I took that thought process to my own life and asked myself this question[you need to come with me now,ask yourself]"WHAT DO PEOPLE SEE OF ME THROUGH THEIR EYES"?]
I want you to think for a minute of all the people in your life,ex:wife,husband,child,grandchild,friends,etc.etc.;it is important for all of us to realize ,it isn't what you see,it's what THEY see!As an illustration;what does my wife see of me?a kind,generous,patient husband,or,impatient,not taking time to listen,not now attitude.How about my grandchildren when they visit,don't touch that,clean up your mess,use the car,are you kidding!Are you following me?
I would humbly ask you to test the theory that perhaps someone in your life sees you differently than you see yourself.Try this:ask a person in your life the following questions,do you know I love you,think I love you,or wish that I loved you?The purpose is not to challenge their answer if it's different than you think it should be,but,to truly listen and grow!
I know that for the rest of my life i will often ask myself the question"WHAT DO PEOPLE SEE OF ME THROUGH THEIR EYES?" to help me be a blessing to them and not always concentrating on my selfish wants and desires.
Until next time,God bless each of you,Joe

Why didn't i take the time ?

Hi All,
I want to share a story with you today.
I'm going back to January of 1963,I was with my father this particular evening watching a high school basketball game at my Alma mater;as it turns out,I had to leave the game before it was completed,I said a typical goodbye to my dad"see you tomorrow" and went home.
The next day,at work,I received a call from our Priest that my father had past away of a massive blood clot that shut off the supply of blood to his brain.
I won't go into great detail of the shock my family and I went through,my father was only 53 yrs. old at the time of his death.
The last day ,before the casket was closed, I was looking at my father's remains and thinking to myself,if I only had one more time to tell him how much I loved him and to kiss him.I was 20 yrs.old when my father died,and typical of most young men my generation I was long past hugging and kissing my father.I made a promise to myself, at that moment, that from that time on I would hug and kiss my children,tell them i love them no matter how old they were,particularly if they were boys,[I have 2 boys,no girls]I didn't want to have to say "Why didn't I take the time"? ever again.I also,would let my family members and my friends know how important they were to me.
You must be asking why I shared this story with you ;I'm glad you asked !!!Today I was invited by one of my fellow church members to join her and her young family in going to a local nursing home to sing Patriotic songs in celebration of our independence day,July 4.What a blessing to me,however,in conversation with one of the caretakers,she shared with me how lonely most of these senior citizens were,they had family who lived as little as a mile away and rarely visited.I was so saddened by this and I remembered my experience of my fathers' untimely death,and thought ,how many of these family members are going to experience the question of "WHY DIDN'T I TAKE THE TIME?
The lesson today is to share this life changing experience of mine, so that ,possibly you won't have to experience this tragic question in your life.I would humbly suggest, that as you go through your life take the time to communicate with your loved ones on a regular basis,and let them know how much you love them,and that your glad their part of your life's experience.
Until next time,God Bless you ,Joe

The Glory of God

Hi Everyone,
Today God put it on my heart to talk about His Glory.
Everything we accomplish,as a Christian,must be for the glory of God.I am including all things, from the day we were saved to all our earthly success,all our earthly trials,all our spiritual awakenings,to overcoming the devils' temptations.
God has put it in our hearts that the Holy Spirit is always with us once we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior;it is then we realize God was ALWAYS available to us.We had to make the choice to choose His House.
As the t.v. commercial goes "can you hear me now",for so many years i said "no",once i did "hear Him" He said "good"My getting it was surely for His Glory!I must represent myself to other Christians and non-believers as a walking,practicing,growing in God's word,Christian for the glory of God;not mine as"look what I'm doing",it's look what God is doing in my life.This is a "right" heart issue;it's from our heart being given completely to God the Father,Jesus His Son, and the Holy Spirit that we can know the Glory goes to God.
When i started this message,i said God has put it on my heart,as i think about it ,God puts all things right on our heart,this is how the Holy Spirit directs us.We are not to go through life prefacing everything we do with "God has put it on my heart ";in the first place,the devil puts it on our heart to sin.The answer is to listen to the Holy Spirit as He puts All Glory to God on our heart and react as a Christian.
In essence then,as we grow in the knowledge of God's word the people we come into contact with will see the Glory of God through our heart actions.
The Holy Spirit God speaks softly and will not beg us to take Gods' path,we answer His calling or not,through our free choice.So,for most of my life i needed a sledge hammer,now, i get it,all glory to God. God bless,until next time.

When will "True" government change come ?

Hi All,
I am truly convinced that change, in our government will only come when we vote for term limits and eliminate "Lobbying".I realize we all "lobby" for something;ex:a raise in pay,however it becomes tainted when i pay the giver of my raise a kickback of 10%.All politicians are tainted by the process,that is ,help fund my campaign and i will listen to you,in other words "you" will have a voice in my decisions.
Politicians must always listen to all sides of an issue then vote on what is best for the majority of their constituents,money giving is the start of corruption.I can give examples of how to change the process,however i will ask you to consider the thought of eliminating paid lobbying first.
Our founding Fathers knew the value of public service,however for a period of time not, a vocation for life.
I expect my blog to open the discussions to many subjects,concentrating on what i have experienced in both my earthly walk ,as well as, my spiritual walk.
I enjoy vigorous debate,mine is not to have all the answers,but a well thought out opinion.
Until next time,Joe