Our Thanksgiving Week Begins

Awww.....beautiful Thanksgiving Week -- the time we really focus on God's multiplied blessings to us. Though it's the mindset we should have all year through, this week we purposely hone in on what's most important to us. I'm in "game-on" mode for all that this week will hold.

But, before I go to that high energy "Martha" mode, I have to pause this morning, in these wee hours and settle into the "Mary" mode to reflect on the beauty of what this upcoming holiday is all about. First of all, I am so grateful that America continues to set apart a day each year for giving thanks. Whew! That's a close one! Aren't we so grateful that the "radicals" that keep trying to remove the values that our country was founded upon -- prayer, Christmas, "In God We Trust" and "The 10 Commandments" and other matters that exclude our Sovereign God, haven't been successful with removing Thanksgiving? And I think it's a double blessing that most of us still believe that Thanksgiving is a day for actually giving thanks to God, not just a time for feeling vaguely thankful while loading up on turkey and pumpkin pie, watching football AND perusing all the Black Friday ads!

May we not forget the heart of Thanksgiving. In fact, it may seem like a cliche, but I believe Thanksgiving should be a part of our DNA where that spirit of gratitude is at the very core of our lives. Just being grateful to wake up in a warm bed. In fact, being grateful we WOKE UP -- considering the alternative. Grateful to be vertical -- not horizontal. And, the list could go into pages for so many other blessings we have.

Thinking about this wonderful holiday, I did a little research on how it started. On October 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation inviting citizens of the United States to "set apart and observe the last Thursday of November, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise." His act established Thanksgiving as a national event. Thanksgiving that year was celebrated on November. 26, one week after Lincoln's trip to a small Pennsylvania town, where he memorialized the fallen in one of the Civil War's most critical and devastating battles. With bodies still lying unburied in the fields behind him, Lincoln asked the nation to "highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom." And with those words, Lincoln rewrote America's political lineage. He traced the nation's birth to the Declaration of Independence, in which Thomas Jefferson wrote that all men are created equal, instead of the Constitution, which allowed slavery to exist. During the four years of the Civil War, more than 620,000 people would die — 2% of the population. Nearly everyone who survived the war was touched by it in some way.

Even amid such profound sorrow, Lincoln found the reason to give thanks. It all bears repeating, but for the sake of space here, I simply offer the last paragraph. We might ask this question: "What would happen if an American President used this kind of language again in an official proclamation? How could the tide change for our country if our nation turned its heart toward God again?

President Lincoln finishes his proclamation with: "I do therefore invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the imposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the divine purpose, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility, and union. In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed. Done at the City of Washington, this 3rd day of October, A. D. 1863."

Happy Thanksgiving, my precious FB friends!
"Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD....." Psalm 33:12

It’s Time to Come Out of the Closet

I loved the movie, “The War Room”, about a woman’s “prayer closet”. That’s where she went to prayerfully “battle for the souls of her family members”. And, while our prayer closets are certainly worthwhile for pleading our cases to God, it’s time we come out of our prayer closets long enough to go into the world to boldly declare WHAT and WHO we stand for as Christians.

Honestly, too many of us keep our Christianity in a closet. We heed the old admonishment to not discuss religion or politics. But, really? The two major discussion points for letting our lights shine are not be discussed? How can our voices be stifled when the voices of others who oppose God’s side are so loud?

I once worked for a technology company going through its beta-testing period. Giving our opinions about the systems were important for the engineers. I didn't want to “rock the boat”. I “hoped” it would all just work itself out and get better. Before long, I broke my silence after I heard someone say: “The squeaky wheel gets the grease.” That idiom means that the loudest (or most noticeable) people (or problems) are the ones to get the most attention. I hear those loud, noisy, angry, bitter, cranky, mocking-God-and-His-people voices in our world today; voices that oppose the 10 Commandments, God’s Word, morality, and God, Himself. Those people are getting so much attention these days because they are boisterous and loud. Christianity remains the largest religious group in the world at nearly a third (31%), yet we restrain our voices.

Jesus didn’t call us to be closet disciples. He gave us some stern warnings about denying Him. Matthew 10:33 says: “but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.” Keeping our faith to ourselves isn’t the “light” that Jesus said we should be. He told us to go into all the world with Him. Our faith was made to be made public because we are called to evangelize the world and we cannot do that silently.
There are controversial groups who have “come out of the closet” and their voices are VERY, VERY loud. It’s time for us to stop hiding in our closets and declare Whose side we are on.

For years I chose to downplay my religious faith. But, as you can see from my daily posts about my “active” faith lifestyle and witness, I am out loud and proud to be a Christian. I look at it this way. If I had the cure for cancer and hid it in my “closet,” what kind of humanitarian would I be? I have the cure for depression, loneliness, anger, sorrow, discouragement, and the lack of joy, love, hope, and peace. I can’t hide it. That’s why I share it every day. I love my friends too much to stay silent. I am not a loud, militant Christian who tells everybody who’s not thinking the way I do that they’re going to hell. I’m a passionate Christian who speaks love boldly and loudly and that "true" love comes only with a faith and belief in God and His Word.

With this blog today, I’m proposing that we bravely use our “outside voices”. Election time is around the corner and we have the opportunity to make our voices heard. One of the greatest ways to be bold and loud as followers of Christ is to believe that politics really does matter. We better believe that these upcoming elections are important. We better believe that our vote makes a difference. I’m not saying that voting takes the place of preaching the gospel or feeding the poor or mentoring our children or having a personal relationship with God. Not a chance. But I am saying that voting for the principles in God’s Word will make a massive difference for our nation. "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." Psalm 33:12

I Believe

Days before I posted my July 4th post, I had put up my "red, white and blue" decor'. Patriotism is a big deal to me. My dad and my brother served in the armed forces, my brother-in-law did, and my oldest grandson serves now. I am proud to be an American, and I'm proud to say so. I loved seeing American pride throughout my city.

Yesterday, my day started with posting my "God Bless America" message and blog. I wanted my words to emphasize gratitude AND praying for our nation -- taking our cues from our Founding Fathers who prayed, often spoke of God and our need for His favor.

So that I'm not only a speaker of my words, but also a doer of my words, I made sure to attend a morning church service. It was complete with patriotic songs, (i.e., "My Country 'Tis of Thee", "The Battle Hymn of the Republic") and a beautiful message about our Founding Fathers' intent and first priority -- that we have freedom of religion. The right to freedom of religion is so central to American democracy that it was the first priority in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Largely because of the First Amendment's prohibition against government regulation or endorsement of religion, diverse faiths have flourished and thrived in America since the founding of the republic. On street corners, throughout our great land, you'll find synagogues and churches of every denomination. No matter where we go, we'll find a place to worship God. I love that. Oh, I know there are many who are patriotic, but don't hold to the need to add God to the equation. But, since this is my post and my blog, I get to exercise my "Freedom of Speech" (also in the First Amendment), to share that:
I believe in God the Father
I believe in Jesus Christ
I believe in His Virgin birth
I believe in the Holy Spirit
And He's given me new life
I believe in the crucifixion
I believe that He conquered death
I believe in the resurrection
And He's coming back again, I believe.

And, because I BELIEVE, I have faith and hope for today and tomorrow that our God cares more about our nation than we do, This is the ONLY nation in history that was formed by people who loved God, for the purpose of being free to worship Him, and I BELIEVE, He will NEVER forget it! Let's not forget HIM in the process!

"Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord!" Psalm 33:12

God Bless America! Almighty God, We DEPEND on YOU!

It's the day we've been waiting for.....cookouts (in our case, a fish fry -- yum), fun, games AND.....fireworks -- either man-handling them ourselves, or sitting back and relaxing as we watch the red, white and blue bursts of fire and lights!

I have such fond memories of 4th of July celebrations at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas where they had the most spectacular fireworks' shows, the family reunions that concluded with a slew of fireworks at the lake, along with the "chasers" that chased my Mama down the street! She nearly broke her neck running like a wild woman! LOL!

There’s nothing wrong with celebrating Independence Day. After all, that’s what our forefathers did, too. But, this year, like never before, I’m realizing that though our Country's INDEPENDENCE meant our freedom from England's rule, I realize how much we need to be DEPENDENT on God. Our forefathers sought Him for His divine will to be done, and shouldn't we seek Him too?

Democracy and freedom were born 240 years ago, July 4th 1776 -- freedoms we so often take for granted. No wonder so many mistreated, disenfranchised people want to leave their oppressed homelands to come to the “land of the free and the home of the brave”.

At the first Constitutional Convention, the delegates were frustrated. There was a tremendous crisis. They were so fragmented that they were just about to throw out the whole concept of a constitution completely. Just then Benjamin Franklin rose to his feet and said: "Gentlemen, if it is true that not one single petal from any flower falls to the ground without escaping God’s attention, will the distress of this nation go unheeded? Let us therefore determine to seek His face." They promptly got down on their knees and when they arose from prayer, the slogan, “e pluribus unum” was born: “One out of many”!

What can we do to ensure that America continues to be a beacon of hope, liberty and freedom? We can pray for our nation and DEPEND on His sovereignty, guidance and blessings.

We have been a blessed nation -- materially, geographically, educationally, and technologically. We are blessed because we have been a nation whose heroes paid a high price for our freedoms. Men and women throughout the history of our Country have given their lives to make this Country what it is - free and independent. God's Word teaches us specifically what a Nation is to do in order to receive and continue in God's blessings.

2 Chronicles 7:14 “If my people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will heal their land and forgive their sins.”

Psalm 33:12 “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD.

Almighty God, like our forefathers who DEPENDED on You for their crises to end, so we pray today for this United States of America and that you would intervene so that your purposes and plans for our Country will be fulfilled. Almighty God, we declare today, our DEPENDENCE on You. Amen.

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

One Nation UNDER GOD!

Day 232 of Photo Inspirations -- One Nation UNDER GOD
Aw!  The 50s...Elvis Presley, Ricky Nelson, I Love Lucy, Ozzie & Harriet, Leave It To Beaver, Father Knows Best, Poodle Skirts, Hula Hoops!!!

What a great, Be-Bop-A-Lula time we had Saturday night -- celebrating the Sock Hop days of the 50s at my community, Hyde Park at Tulsa Hills.  I did my best  "Olivia Newton John" impersonation from Grease.  As one of the hosts of the event, it was such a treat to research some of the 50s memories, like those I mentioned above, in black and white TV, "Name That Tune" show (we played it at our party), hula hooping (I won that one! LOL!), bubble gum blowing contest, etc.  I am a Baby Boomer, one of the record number of babies (3.4 million) born in the U.S. (must have been a lot of cold nights -- LOL!).  

Goodness -- have times ever changed the way of doing things since then.  Compared to today, it's a wonder we survived those days, and are even here to tell the story!  My fellow 50s generation will recall that, as toddlers, no car seats, instead, we stood by our parents and what stopped us from being thrown into the windshield when they stopped the car quickly, was their automatic arm.  We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles.  When we rode our bikes, we had no helmets or even shoes.  We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.  We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank soft drinks with sugar in it, but we weren't overweight because......WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!!   We didn't have video games, no 99+ channels on cable, no DVD movies, no surround sound, no cell phones, no computers, no Internet, BUT.......WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!  

Lots of blast-from-the-past memories, but I wouldn't trade those days for these days for anything -- particularly when it comes to child safety in cars and otherwise, and brilliant technology that makes life so much easier. There's just no sense living in the past and thinking about the way things were. There's just too much to celebrate about the way things ARE, and that God intended us to be here and be fully engaged AT THIS TIME.

But there's also paramount things that should NEVER be changed.  One of the most critically important decisions that was made in 1954 was the addition of "One Nation Under God" to the Pledge of Allegiance.  And in 1957, our currency was printed with "In God We Trust" words on it.

Yesterday, my FB post was about those words: "In God We Trust".   Yes, there are those who want to stamp out God from our schools and public places. But, here's the deal -- emperors have tried to destroy those words, philosophies have tried to stamp them out, tyrants have tried to wash them from the face of the earth with the very blood of those who claimed it, yet, it still stands. "In God We Trust" is still our non-negotiable.  It is indelibly printed in our hearts, our spirits and our minds.  Now, let's pray that our nation NEVER concedes to letting it go.  

"Blessed is the Nation is "whose God is the Lord." Psalm 33:12



Psalm 100:5;  'For the Lord is good; His steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness TO ALL GENERATIONS."