Beauty Hidden by Weeds

I put fertilizer down on my lawn just before the rain. That was a few days ago, and since then I’ve been looking for signs of growth, for signs that it is working. The grass might be greener, and maybe it is growing. I just can’t tell yet. The growth is slow and steady … but I have faith that it will grow.

What I do see are weeds growing! Overnight, all over, I see weeds. They are pretty obvious – different colors and textures than the grass – and about twice as high. It is easy to pull them out right now but if I let them go they will overtake my yard.

Weeds are like that. They are opportunistic, taking the energy and the feeding first, trying to choke out what should be there.

I fertilized at church also. And I noticed the planting area at the entrance. Actually, I noticed the weeds growing there, waist high and thick. I pulled and I chopped and I even had to cut until they were mostly removed. And what did that reveal when I looked behind and beyond the weeds?

Beauty!

Hidden by the weeds were daylilies and about 15 Easter lilies in bloom - all planted by someone else. So I have to wonder, as we talked about the power of endurance including my spiritual roots today. What weeds are hiding the beauty that the blood of Jesus has put on my heart?

From the song by Kathryn Scott that we sang today: “At the foot of the cross where I am made complete … I trade my ashes in for beauty and wear forgiveness like a crown.”

Tim

Today I was Blessed...

... by the prayers and praises lifted up by everyone. The message today was on "Endurance". I marvel how what the ladies and I were studying connected with Pastor's message. Our morning study today was taken from 2 Cor. 12: 1-10. We studied about Paul's vision and his thorn in the flesh. We learned that Paul's ability to endure his trials came from his deep connection with God. God was the source of his faith and he wasn't afraid to share that. Paul loved God so much that he was willing to "endure" anything for the cause of Christ. One the the verses that touched us today was vs. 9 where God tells Paul that "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in your weakness." So often we want God to take away our trials but God wants us to remember that He is there and he will help us endure whatever we are going through. God gave Paul his vision to prepare him for all he was to endure. God wanted Paul to know that he was the source of all comfort. Have you ever thought why you may be going through something, perhaps it is to draw you closer to God and not farther away. The bible says to draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Let's draw near to God this week in our praises and prayers and the reading of His word. Have a blessed week. Prayer meeting at 8 pm. on Tuesday. (Caroline)

Laminin

Hi All

When Marc was with us, one of the testimonies he gave was about his health and recovery and his faith in the future that God has for him.

He also talked about laminin, a miniture protein in our bodies that holds our cells together.

Here is a short bit on laminin.

T

http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=152b5103d741aca61093

26 Guards-

An email I received the other day. Reminds of Alaina while in Philly. Because of your prayers; God is protecting her....

A missionary on furlough told this true story while visiting his home church in Michigan.

'While serving at a hospital in Africa, every two weeks I traveled by bicycle through the jungle to a nearby city for supplies. This was a journey of two days and required camping overnight at the halfway point. On one of these journeys, I arrived in the city where I planned to collect money from a bank, purchase medicine, and supplies, and then begin my two-day journey back to the hospital. Upon arrival in the city, I observed two men fighting, one of whom had been seriously injured. I treated him for his injuries and at the same time talked to him about the Lord. I then traveled two days, camping overnight, and arrived home without incident...Two weeks later I repeated my journey. Upon arriving in the city, I was approached by the young man I had treated. He told me that he had known I carried money and medicines. He said, 'Some friends and I followed you into the jungle and planned to kill you and take your money and drugs. But just as we were about to move into your camp, we saw that you were surrounded by 26 armed guards.' At this, I laughed and said that I was certainly all alone in that jungle campsite. The young man said, 'No, sir, I was not the only person to see the guards, my friends also saw them, and we all counted them. It was because of those guards that we were afraid and left you alone.' "At this point in the sermon, one of the men in the congregation jumped to his feet and interrupted the missionary and asked if he could tell him the exact day this happened. The missionary told the congregation the date, and the man who interrupted told him this story: "On the night of your incident in Africa, it was Morning here and I was preparing to go play golf when I felt the urge to pray for you. The urging of the Lord was so strong, I called men in this church to meet with me here in the sanctuary to pray for you. Would all of those men who met with me on that day stand up?" The men stood up. The missionary wasn't concerned with who they were, he was too busy counting how many. There were 26!

I have read stories similar to this one and am not sure if it's an actual TRUE story; however I DO know that it COULD be true and that it IS true in my daughter's case. So thanks again for all your prayers! Sal

"crack pots"

We are all just a bunch of "crack pots"! That's what we discovered in prayer Tuesday night. I gotta tell ya, if you aren't there; you are REALLY missing out! You can just feel the Holy Spirit moving! I never know how to pray and am pretty intimidated sometimes. Yet on Tuesday night it just doesn't matter! It was really awesome because Pastor Ron, Tim, Caroline and Bonnie walked around the neighborhood handing out flyers re: Gleaners and they each had the opportunity to pray with someone! Pam and I came later and were fortunate enough to hear their stories. Maybe these people are not coming to our church on Sunday. Maybe they aren't going anywhere yet. But we are having an impact! There is no way that we are not! Guys, I mean everyone, this is what church is all about! It's NOT about the Sunday morning service! It's about all those days in between. It's about us being cracked and letting our light shine through! Building trust, building relationships. For the past few months I feel as though I sealed up my pot. And I don't even know how it happened! And last night God took a hammer to me and broke me all to pieces. I need Him so much. But we all need each other too! I know that we have been going through some tough times with Pastor Ron losing his mom and well; just so many needs within our family. But He is faithful. We are ALL growing in Him! Let's always remember to pray each and every day. All the time. We were so red hot and on fire Feb, March and April and then warm weather hit and well...just look at our blog and how many posts there are for May....Let's light that fire once again! Let's not let the enemy sell us his lies. I just know we are about to explode so you had all better be ready!

Thank you so much Pam for this picture and this reminder to us that we are all just a bunch of crack pots! Please pray more often! You have such a beautiful and a powerful gift! Sal