Hopeless? Never.

If you've read here long, you know I share very few tragic stories. Very few. But I feel I must share this one in case it may perhaps save a life.

In our Buffalo area, a priest, Father Luke (I'll call him) was an incredible encouragement to everyone. He always asked others, "What can I do to help? What do you need?" He got kids into schools they wouldn't otherwise be able to attend and for 26 years of his priesthood he was a helper, an encourager, helping inside and outside the church with food and clothing drives, soup kitchens, finding shelter for those who needed it and so much more. People said he felt like their true friend.

Last week, Father Luke committed suicide. 

People are still reeling, in pain, and his memorial service is today. News stories said, "Father Luke was given a letter last week informing him that he would be reassigned as a hospital chaplain and that he would have a week to leave the church.  Many people believe Father Luke was pushed too hard to leave the church and just, "snapped.""

Why share this sad story? It comes with a warning: satan comes hard after those who make a difference. He taunts them, tells them (inside their heads or through confused people) they're wasting time , their help means nothing, has no lasting effect on anybody. He tells them they're not doing enough, they must do more! (do more!) and no one really appreciates them, not even God, Himself.

Perhaps you have heard a few of those lines, yourself.

Yet today I simply want to remind you that satan is a liar. He's the father of lies--the best liar on the planet. He knows how to attack our weakest areas and he'll keep attacking until we run, hide or give-up altogether--if we begin believing those lies.

But there's another way to live, namely, with Jesus as the first and last word and reason we do anything. Or are anything.  If Jesus is more important to me than anyone else, then what He says will matter most. The encouragement I receive from Him will keep me going, even while satan screams "give-up!". 

If my obedience to Jesus takes me someplace else, that will be ok, for He will go with me--and His presence, His love, are what matter most. If I learn to receive from Jesus all that I need, then I'll be ok... I won't try yanking from people what only God can give me. I'll never run dry, for His living water well is always bubbling--if I stay planted beside it.

Jesus will never wander away from me. He'll never leave me to myself or to the lies satan would have me believe are truths. He loves me--He loves you-- way, way too much to ever leave us alone.


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"He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers."   ... Psalm 1:3

"The Lord is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life--of whom shall I be afraid?"   ... Psalm 27:1


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In my comment box, Mary (thanks, again!) recommended the book, Quiet: The Power of Introverts by Susan Cain and although I've not gotten a copy yet, I did discover Susan's wonderful blog. Wow--Encouragement City. Find it here.

At a different site, I found this article, Sarcasm: A Guide For Shy People, insightful, indeed.

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I truly do love our new red front door. Sometimes I open it into the living room just to gratefully stare at it and to sniff the fresh oil paint. Really.

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As Political As I Get

So it makes me sad that some of my Christian friends have gone all ballistic  over this upcoming election, allowing it to rent whole acres of space inside their heads without them realizing it.

But at least one of my young anti-establishment relatives is still keeping a sense of humor about it all. He posted this cartoon yesterday:

... and I had to laugh because I could just see this happening in his home. :)

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But other friends of mine are still happy, thank-goodness. One of them (who I've known since she was 3) posts delightful photos like these of her young son:

Is that adorable or what? Easy to imagine these kids as married adults, the husbands discussing sports and the wives looking over flowers one of them just planted.

And since Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever, Life is still amazing, Folks, even during all this dire election bantering. And may we never forget that.

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Oh, I found another terrific book at Dollar Tree. Some of you will groan and roll your eyes, but others of you may want to read this:

Frankly, I could not put this down for two days. Incredibly interesting and I don't care what other reviewers said, I found her mission and her sense of humor a delight. Read about this interesting book here.

Back to my vacation. Over and out.  :)

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"The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I (Jesus) came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it ^[a]overflows)."  ... John 10:10

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Of Red Hats and Being Who We Are

I hope no one relies upon Blogger to accurately show you how many people read your blog. Their stat counter is woefully (w-o-e-f-u-l-l-y) inaccurate, showing you only a tiny fractional number of people who read your words.

Instead, StatCounter.com is far better, incredibly accurate and will supply you with all sorts of details about your blog's visitors.

Well. StatCounter shows me the word searches which bring newcomers to my blog and the phrase which pops up most? "I don't like parties." Or, "Why don't I like parties?" Or, "I hate parties." Google those words and somewhere on the page you'll see a link to my Why I Don't Like Parties post which I wrote years ago.

I find it incredibly interesting that lots of other people besides me don't like parties. But then, I'm still always amazed when anybody agrees with me about anything. Until I went online at age 41, I believed I'd been dropped down here from another planet--I'd always felt like a weirdo. Like one odd individual. 

But then, here online! I discovered lots of you who also must have come from my home planet.

Heh.

Anyway ... Early, early this morning I tried googling 'homemaker clubs' in my area (and other variations) and found basically nothing. Then I googled Red Hat Society and my area, read a few lists of specific ladies' interests, (what they're searching for in the Society) and got that "from another planet" feeling all over again. Hardly anyone held my same interests and too, the listed upcoming meetings/places were not my idea of a good time.

And then I read this:

Older Ladies and the Red Hat Society

... and felt better. Oh, the blogger could have worded her post more kindly and in a more balanced way, especially since she'd never even visited a Red Hat Society meeting, but beneath all that, I recognized her thoughts and found them to be kindred ones.

And then I read the many comments following her post and discovered more balance (and wisdom) from women who actually belonged to the Society and I was reminded of why I appreciate comments after blog posts--they can fill-in gaps we bloggers miss, adding a new depth of understanding for readers. (Hint, hint.)

Now, did those positive comments about the Red Hat Society change me into a joiner? A lover of loud, silly parties? Uh, no. But they did remind me that as people, we are all wired differently. We are unique. Even those of us who have much in common do not have everything in common, but rather, we have special quirks all our very own.

And God bless the groups out there which allow us to splash around with others who share those silly/serious quirks. Those groups which remind us we are not alone in our beliefs, our interests or our need to share who we have become.







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My current favorite tv crime show? The Mentalist. Did you see the second episode of this latest season? One of my favorite episodes, ever--loved the whimsical angle. Check it out here.


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