The computer hasn’t been on all weekend and I’m far behind in posting. Maybe the muse has deserted me. It was an extremely busy weekend – busy for this homebody, at least. Friday night and Saturday morning I went to a Growing Churches Conference at 1st Baptist. Talk about a bargain: Attendees got to choose 5 classes for the sum total of $5.00. You can’t beat that, especially since the classes were well-prepared, well-lead and very helpful. The conference wasn’t just for pastors and other church staff. There were more lay people there than ministerial staff.

Katey & I left the conference and headed straight to Carolyn’s house. She started a tradition 4 years ago where all Mrs. Virginia’s kids and kidlettes and great kidlettes get together the last Saturday in July and grill burgers. Every family provides a side dish. For the longest time in the Peters family there were no little ones to coo over and rock to sleep, but now we have a passel of them. If I didn’t leave anyone out, the latest count is 14 under the age of eight. Rowdy times, but what a blessing!

The only regret this weekend is that I didn’t get to go to the Plantersville Reunion. Read Cathy’s post and George’s post if you’re interested. (And to make it even more fun, the link function isn't working properly. You can link to Cathy's site to the right and from her site choose The Plantersville Connection.) Sounds like everyone had a really good time. Buddy, Betty Sue & CD went before lunch at Carolyn’s and got to see lots of folks they knew. Who ever thought this up had a really great idea. Kudos to all who worked on it !!

The computer hasn’t been on all weekend and I’m far behind in posting. Maybe the muse has deserted me. It was an extremely busy weekend – busy for this homebody, at least. Friday night and Saturday morning I went to a Growing Churches Conference at 1st Baptist. Talk about a bargain: Attendees got to choose 5 classes for the sum total of $5.00. You can’t beat that, especially since the classes were well-prepared, well-lead and very helpful. The conference wasn’t just for pastors and other church staff. There were more lay people there than ministerial staff.

Katey & I left the conference and headed straight to Carolyn’s house. She started a tradition 4 years ago where all Mrs. Virginia’s kids and kidlettes and great kidlettes get together the last Saturday in July and grill burgers. Every family provides a side dish. For the longest time in the Peters family there were no little ones to coo over and rock to sleep, but now we have a passel of them. If I didn’t leave anyone out, the latest count is 14 under the age of eight. Rowdy times, but what a blessing!

The only regret this weekend is that I didn’t get to go to the Plantersville Reunion. Read Cathy’s post and George’s post if you’re interested. Sounds like everyone had a really good time. Buddy, Betty Sue & CD went before lunch at Carolyn’s and got to see lots of folks they knew. Who ever thought this up had a really great idea. Kudos to all who worked on it !!

“…let them not look at God through difficulties, as we see the sun shorn of splendor through a fog; but let them look at difficulties through God. Let them put God between themselves and the disasters which threaten them. Let them cast the whole responsibility upon Him. Has He not thus brought you into difficulties, that He may have an opportunity of strengthening your faith, by giving some unexampled proof of His power? Wait only on the Lord, trust also in Him: His name is Jehovah-jireh; He will provide.” Abraham, or the Obedience of Faith by F.B. Meyer

It’s not a disaster that I face, but an uncertain time at work. There are some personnel issues that are plaguing me now and the deep breathing is not quite enough to decrease the stress level. But I can depend on God to show up and prove His transcendent power.

And while I’m waiting…..Think of family. Think of friends. Think of mountains and gurgling brooks. Think of baby kisses and husband hugs. See! My blood pressure is going down already.

Sweet, messy, wet baby kisses are a treat. That’s what I got yesterday after Marlee Kupcake finished her bottle. She took a little catnap while drinking her afternoon snack and woke up in a sweet mood. Even at 4+ months, she likes to “give sugars”. Little Miss Bright Eyes laughed like she’d done something great. Mamaw thought so, too..

Those sweet moments make up for some of the rougher ones that come during working hours. But there are some bright spots. One of my employee’s went to a convention in Atlanta the week of the 4th. His group toured the Coca-Cola plant and he brought me a 6-ounce Coke. I don’t even care for the Coca-Cola drink, but take one of the little ones, ice it down until crystals form and there’s absolutely nothing better.

I’m not the nostalgic sort, but the little Coke brought back a couple of good memories. While I was looking for a bottle opener (who uses those any more?) I remembered that when I was growing up, there were no canned drinks and none in the plastic bottle with the screw-on top. Every single time my friends & I opened a drink in a glass bottle, we ran our fingers around the mouth of the bottle to remove the rust (?), then put our thumb inside and “popped” it.

Another memory is of the old Catfish Hotel on the Tennessee River. We had to climb a narrow set of rickety old stairs to the restaurant. They served the best slaw – my first memory of paprika. And they kept bringing the little Cokes as long as we asked for them. By the time we finished our catfish dinner our table was littered with a sea of empty Coke bottles. Daddy, Mama, Darrell & I always went with Mama’s sister & her family who lived in Corinth. (We did a lot of vacationing & weekend loafing with Uncle Paul, Aunt Ruth, Richard & Susan.) We’d sit there over the empty bottles and the bones of those fish, look out over that muddy river and laugh about eating fish from it. I do miss my Aunt Ruth.

We’re beginning to feel almost human again. Rain on Saturday morning, Sunday afternoon and this morning. It’s too late for most of the vegetables in Terry’s garden, but we have really needed the rain for other reasons, too.

I’m one of those people who need a rainy, gloomy day occasionally. I would have enjoyed staying home this morning just to soak up the dreary day. Sunshine is great, but the inner me needs the opposite. People who suffer from SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) use light therapy. Is there a “dark” therapy? Oh, yeah, it’s called “blindness”. Seriously, it’s not what I can or can’t see; it’s what I can feel. Weird, huh?

It does me good - spirit, heart, soul, mind & body - to spend time thinking about Who God is and how I fit in to His creative purpose. That's what I did this morning on the treadmill.

God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit - three in person; one in nature. These three Persons of the Trinity work in various ways in Their creation. Two places in scripture place all three Persons in our world at one time in special ways. The first chapter of Genesis records these words, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said..." John tells us in his gospel that, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (1:1) The second place can be found in Matt 3:16-17 where Matthew records, "After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.'"

There's a picture in my mind of the Father, seated on His throne in Heaven, completely Sovereign and perfect in all His ways. He tells us in Isaiah that He knows the end from the beginning; therefore, nothing is outside His control. He doesn't fret or wring His Hands when humans make mistakes; there is no Plan B with God. As hard as it is for us to understand, He got it right the first time and there is no do-over. Our Father is just and will not abide or tolerate sin. So how can sinful man have a relationship with Him?

We can see the Son, Jesus Christ, seated beside the Father, who has given Him all power and authority. (Matt 28:18; Rom 1:4; Eph 1:18-23) The Son paid the perfect price for our sins and only through Him can we approach our Father. (1 Tim 2:5) Can't you just hear Him!

"Look, there she comes through the throne room door. Your daughter's heart is shining with joy that she belongs to Us. Just hear the praise pouring from her. Don't We love her beyond words or measure!"

"Look, there she comes through the throne room door. Your daughter's heart is dark with sin she wants to confess. Isn't it right that she runs to Us instead of away from Us when she's done wrong! Don't We love her beyond words or measure!"

"Look, there she comes through the throne room door. Your daughter is bowed down with a burden much to heavy for her. Isn't it good that she comes to Us for relief. Don't we love her beyond words or measure!"

The third Person of the Trinity is the Holy Spirit: Indweller, Comforter, Friend, Guide, Teacher, Convictor, Remembrancer. Christ dwells in us through His Spirit. Col 1:26-27 says, "...the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory."

This is all so far beyond my comprehension, but I have no trouble believing it because on occasion the Father, Son and Spirit smile on me, as if to say, "Let's give her a glimpse. She doesn't deserve it, but don't We love her beyond words or measure!"

Normal people sleep late on Saturdays - especially rainy Saturdays. No claim to normalcy here. I was awake and out of bed before 5am. Of course, the benefit is a quiet time with the sound of gentle rain and the smell of brewing coffee.

No long post right now. I'm scanning pictures that you'll be able to see in my xanga photo album later this weekend.

It’s been a strange week. With a holiday smack in the middle, there’ve been two Mondays and two Fridays and two Saturdays. Weird. Our company allowed anyone who wanted to take a vacation this week to do so. We’ve been working w/ a half crew, but it’s been a lot quieter, for some reason.

An employee and friend lost her baby brother this week. This 43 year old man worked Tue morning, mowed the yard Tue afternoon, laid down for a nap Tue evening and never woke up. How very sad for this dear family. Another employee’s dad is on total life support and they are agonizing over the decision that could end his life. Been there, done that. Hurts terribly. (Note to self: Make a living will very soon. Note fo family: DNR)

On a lighter note......

Home-made strawberry ice cream….yum-yum. Laurie & crew came over Wed afternoon bearing a sweet gift. David (D’s dad) makes a mean ice cream. I’ve been rationing it and I’m already looking forward to the last installment tonight. It’s not helping my weight loss effort, but IT IS SOOOOO GOOD.

Look on my xanga site tomorrow for a few new pics.

It’s a matter of semantics to most folks, but ask a person who is blind, deaf, paralyzed, etc., and they will tell you it matters greatly. People who don’t have a physical handicap are prone to refer to those who do as dis-abled. News flash! We’re not dis-abled; we’re handicapped. “Disabled” implies we are not able and that’s far from the truth. And it’s not just the people who have physical challenges who are handicapped. There’s the man who can’t get a job; the single mom w/ no financial support; the teen w/ abusive parents; the successful career woman who hides her crippling emotional baggage. Whether it’s chronic back pain or chronic heart pain, it’s a handicap. And we all have them.

I thought of Mike Orman recently and it brought all this to mind again. If you’ve heard my “Mike” story, just skip this part.

Mike used to build street rods, work on motorcycles and race both. After he went totally blind from diabetic retinopathy he still built street rods and worked on motorcycles. And occasionally some dummy would take him out on a back road and let him drive. One night Mike and his wife went out to dinner at Malone’s Fish & Steak House. When they were about to leave they ran into a sighted guy and his date. Since James worked w/ Mike, there was lots to talk about, but it was sprinkling rain. Mike’s wife noticed they had a flat & relayed this info to Mike. James said, “I’ll get my date seated and come back to help you.” Mike was removing the flat when he heard James walk up behind him and start talking. Since he didn’t offer to help, Mike continued the messy job of putting on the spare. When he finished, he put all the tools and the flat in the trunk and they were on their way. He sneered when he said to Wanda, “James certainly was a big help.” Wanda laughingly replied, “Yes, he was. He stood there and held the flashlight for you the whole time.”

You see, James didn’t think of Mike as disabled. To James he was just another guy who could take care of things. It probably took Mike a little longer to change the flat (hence the description handicapped), but he still accomplished the task with no help. Oh, except for the light of the flashlight, which he couldn’t see!

So when you catch yourself referring to someone as disabled, stop and think. Are they really? Or do they just have a handicap, like most other human beings?