Trusting Your Feelings 1/28/2019

Good Morning,

Door County Mocha Mint Coffee just splashed into my cup and the steam is rising toward the ceiling of the kitchen. I have a front row seat to a blizzard in front of me. It didn't take our dog Gibbs too long to get his business done outside this morning. The weather chased him right back into the house.

I learned a long time ago that facts, faith and feelings are three separate things. Along with feelings, usually come emotions and the two can be a bad combination.

I never lean on my feelings or emotions. Those two things, when combined can make for a bad cocktail. To survive in this world I rely on my faith in God.

The writer of Psalm 138 says of God, "In the day when I cried out, You answered me, and made me bold with strength in my soul.” When we are right with God, we never go into turmoil alone. We have the Creator of the Universe on our side.
For example, take David and the story of how he killed Goliath (1 Samuel 17) At the time, David was a shepherd boy, not a warrior. But when he saw Goliath mocking God's people, David approached the king and asked to go down and fight. Picture the babysitter next door or the kid who delivers your papers telling the President, "Let me handle this one." 
David's ability to not be shaken by Goliath's size or insults was the result of David's faith in God. David tells the king, "The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine" (1 Samuel 17:37). David had faith that God would defeat the giant and deliver His people, so David to stood up to the king and then to the giant.

Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as "confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." 
Faith is the result of believing the Gospel — the good news that Jesus died for our sin and made a way for us to be right with God and spend eternity in heaven. When we allow the reality of the Gospel to affect every part of our lives, it changes the way we think which changes how we behave.
Faith causes us to act on what we haven't experienced yet, to believe promises in the Bible that haven't been fulfilled yet, and to trust God when our situations haven't changed yet.

If I followed my emotions or feelings I would be inconsistent in my approach to even the simple things of life. I love my job, but many days when I wake up I don't feel like going to work. I therefore would miss a lot of work and would be out of a job. If I followed all of my emotions, anger would take over too many times and I would be beat up or in jail for beating on others.

I place my faith in God, and trust the 66 books of the Bible to ground me and give me God's reference on life with the facts of His desires. Faith, along with Biblical facts  not emotions or feelings set my life in the right direction. It's when I wander from this plan that I find myself  compounding the turmoil of life.

Faith is fact, not the fiction of feelings or emotions. Be safe out there.

Marty

Answering The Call 1/27/2019

Good Morning.

This morning I hope you are well physically and spiritually. I have chosen a hot cup of Door County Highlander Grog Coffee to start my day.

Isaiah 41:9-10

⁹ I took you from the ends of the earth,

    from its farthest corners I called you.

I said, ‘You are my servant’;

    I have chosen you and have not rejected you.

¹⁰ So do not fear, for I am with you;

    do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you and help you;

    I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Many of us this year will hear a call from God to get involved in something that represents a charity, family, or ministry. Many of us will doubt that we are equipped for such a calling or experience. The truth is that when God calls upon us we really are not equipped or ready to handle what He has called us to, without His help. But God promises those whom He calls His right hand is there to hold us. God never calls if He is not into what He calls us to.  With God to help us how can we fail?

So when He calls, drop the excuses of inadequacy, timing, and fear. Join in and do not be dismayed at what God can do through and with you. God loves to do the extraordinary with ordinary people.

God bless,
Marty

Lost In The Calamity 1/26/2019

Good Morning,

The frigid weather is still with us and I sure do appreciate my cup of Door County Maple Coffee this morning. It is supposed to be even colder next week. My kind of weather! No mosquitoes for sure. The hearth is hot with another load of firewood.

This week has been an avalanche of news that would throw any mind into a spin. Building a border wall, shutting down the government, people without jobs, unsafe skies, abortion law changes in New York, spies, and poor politics took the headlines and the wind right out of many of us. 

Matthew 6:9-13 New International Version (NIV)

hallowed be your name,

¹⁰ your kingdom come,

your will be done,

    on earth as it is in heaven.

¹¹ Give us today our daily bread.

¹² And forgive us our debts,

    as we also have forgiven our debtors.

¹³ And lead us not into temptation,

    but deliver us from the evil one.

⁹ “This, then, is how you should pray:

“‘Our Father in heaven,

Hidden back behind these other news attention mongers was the fact that a three year old boy in North Carolina had wandered away from home and was lost in the freezing elements for three days. Search parties sought to find him without success.

Rene and I honestly prayed about all of these news items and are still seeking God for the answers. We also prayed for that little boy to be found. Time was running out and one of the short updates on him was that officials were losing hope. I am sure prayers for him were many and non ending.

But low and behold right after what I would call the nightmare of news that actually just angers me, the announcement came that this little guy was found alive and would be fine. This was good news, for all to hear. I have been lost in the woods when I was about twelve years old while deer hunting. Darkness came, i was dressed for the weather and knew that someone would be looking for me. i was armed with a rifle, but yet I can still recall a little despair setting in and thinking I just might sit out all night was not a great feeling. Yet this little guy made it.  Who knows what he went through waiting and wandering looking for home and his mom?

In the midst of political calamity the prayers for a small boy and his safety were heard and answered. That snippet of news made my night and for a short while, I cared less about a wall, lost jobs, and two political parties that should be ashamed of themselves for being stooges on a world level.

The good news reminded me of what can happen when people agree and pray.  We need a little more of that, don't we?

Have a great day. May it be one of prayer and peace of heart.

Marty.

Taking Out The Trash 1/25/2019

Good Morning,

I just let our dog Gibbs back in from his morning trek outside and the cold weather greeted me like a slap in the face. My Door County Maple Coffee just finished brewing and it is a welcome addition to my table.

On a weekly basis our household trash gets picked up from the curb in front of our home. During the week as everyone does, we have things that need to be thrown away. Those items are tossed into two different containers. One container is for garbage and the other is for things that can be recycled.

On the night before the trash is picked up, we walk these two containers to the curb and when we return the next day from work they are still there, but they have been emptied. The trash is gone. And gone for good. None of it is left in the trash containers. they are empty.

Now and then due to weather difficulties or when trash day falls on a holiday, we miss the pick up and disposal of our trash. We have to wait a day or two longer before the public works department can get to us.

Ephesians 4:31-32 New International Version (NIV)

³¹ Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. ³² Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. 

Now once Rene and I throw something  out, it stays thrown out.  Friends, now and then we all accumulate trash of the heart, mind or soul. For instance if we hung on to the meat wrapper that encased our ground beef for too long without throwing it out, that rancid smell would permeate the house. To harbor trash of the heart and today we will focus on forgiveness, is a practice that will pollute the heart, mind and soul. It will eat at us from the inside out and soon enough it shows in our attitudes and our actions.

When something smells, it can leave the  unpleasant odor on our clothing, or in our homes and it is difficult to remove it. The longer we wait to truly forgive someone makes it more and more difficult to remove the odor of hate and malice from our lives. Nothing seems to go right until we remove the stink of not forgiving from our life.

Friends, let's make today a day to forgive and forgive all the way, not holding on to any of the trash that needs to be tossed. You will feel better because you just stopped carrying a heavy weight hung around your heart.

Love to all,

Marty

Keeping It Simple 1/24/2019

Good Morning,

I hit the floor this morning and much to my surprise the floor was very cold. Our furnace thermostat had accidentally been turned way down. It has been rectified and a small fire was made in the fireplace to supplement the need for some heat. The cup of Door County Apple Cobbler Coffee at my side is a welcome gulp of flavor and warmth this chilly morning.

2 Corinthians 1:12 English Standard Version (ESV)

Paul's Change of Plans

¹² For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you.

We are preparing for a drastic drop in temperatures, that will begin today and last for a few days. To prepare I made a pot of pheasant and wild rice soup  and some bread buns. The vehicles are ready and are equipped for emergencies. Rene has disposable hand warmers in her back pack. Warm socks and boots will be in fashion for us. Extra blankets are ready if needed. I will be praying for her safe travels.

Friends, it wasn't a big effort to prepare for this frozen spell. Nothing we did is elaborate or over the top. We keep things simple in this home.

This simple mindedness can be applied elsewhere in life. Our finances have a way of getting out of control unless we keep things simple.We do vacation, but plan ahead and save the money and then try to stay within our budget.  Cars are nothing but rust and salt collectors where we live, so we wash them and maintain them. They last longer. We read the newspaper and use the savings coupons provided when we grocery shop. We eat what our appetite can afford, not always what our appetite wants. We have a garden in the summer and tomatoes, peppers and apples are preserved for the winter. We stay home a lot and try to enjoy time with friends when we can. We purchase things that will last and last they do. We avoid the I want and use the I need instead of making compulsive purchases.

Nothing I wrote about is complicated and it has been very successful for us. We are content and happy. Try living a simple life. Cut down the schedules, trim the waste in your home. Make plans that don't require payments later.

God bless,

Marty

Fighting The Temptation 1/23/2019

Good Morning,

A snowstorm wrapped us in a white fury last night and there is a driveway and sidewalk that needs some attention this morning. But, that can wait until later. I just plan on sitting here for awhile. I finished my prayer time and now it's time to enjoy a cup of Door County Jingle Bell Java Coffee.

My knee replacement journey has delivered me to an out patient physical therapy clinic which is very close to our home. Yesterday I was there for one of my scheduled appointments. I want to give a shout out to my caregivers at the clinic. They are very compassionate and supportive. I would call them a credit to their profession.

We have discussed progress and goals for my recovery and my goal is to be able to duck hunt in October as well as go back to work and drive soon. There is a hidden goal that I must confess to.

Just West of the clinic is a Frozen Custard emporium. They advertise the flavor of the day on a big sign in front of their store. I was looking out of the window of the clinic as I was attempting some stair climbing. That sign with the Kit Kat Swirl was staring me in the face. It seemed like there was nothing more I wanted than a scoop of frozen custard.

I made myself a promise. I will give into the temptation when I can walk from the clinic, into the store of frozen delights, purchase heaven's gift of eggs and cream, and return by walking back to the clinic without a cane or any assistance and treat my new friends to an afternoon dish of custard.

There is a time in all of our lives when we need a helping hand. The caregivers are doing their job with enthusiasm and professionalism. But in all honesty, I need them and their skills that I do not possess. I can only do what they teach me to do. I have to accept help.

Many times pride gets in our way of accepting help and we try to go it alone when there are people ready to help us.  I am a big guy and used to bulling my way through obstacles, but on this journey I have needed a lot of help and had to swallow my pride and accept assistance here and there. Assistance has come in many forms. Each is a blessing.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 New King James Version (NKJV)

The Value of a Friend

Because they have a good reward for their labor.

¹⁰ For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.

But woe to him who is alone when he falls,

For he has no one to help him up.

¹¹ Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm;

But how can one be warm alone?

¹² Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him.

And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

⁹ Two are better than one,

I relearned something I knew but did not always apply. Two are better than one.

So here's the point.  Help others when you can. Accept help from others when it is offered. Thank God for those He sends your way.

And every time you can, enjoy some frozen custard!

Marty

A Smile Goes A Long Way 1/22/2019

Good Morning,

I just sat down with a cup of Door County Wisconsin Harvest Blend Coffee at my side. My night was filled with prayer and reading. My eyes are a little heavy as a write today.

Hebrews 13:2 New King James Version (NKJV)

² Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels. 

My temporary desk at the kitchen table has a benefit or two. If I time things just right my wife Rene sits next to me eating her breakfast before she heads to work. This morning we are dining on apple slices covered with peanut butter and a couple warm fresh biscuits. Great start to the day.

For me, just having Rene smile and I seeing her flip a piece of apple to our dog Gibbs is worth getting up early. He always heads to the heat vent in the winter to warm up after he has had his breakfast. He has done this since he was a puppy. We have an odd dog.

 I have a physical therapy appointment later this day for my two recovering knees. The progress is slow, but steady and the bed seemed like a good place to stay, but the experience of sharing breakfast and a smile with my wife called me to write early and miss a little sleep.

I did mention that smile I received from Rene. A smile is a symbol of recognition, love, acceptance or respect. It doesn't take much to look someone in the eye and smile. The receiver of the smile if they are even remotely human has an emotional experience. They can smile back, nod, or let the smile warm a cold broken heart. If the person smiles back and adds a pleasantry such as a "Good Morning" it is acknowledged as being received and appreciated. In twenty seconds a day can have a dose of sweetness from the "sugar tree" of life. It is also exercise for the face muscles for all of you fitness gurus.

Sometimes after greeting someone, while walking away I say a prayer asking God to bless the person who smiled at me or I greeted. Again in 20 seconds heaven can move. So today if someone greets you with a smile, appreciate it. Smile back and lose a calorie. Extend a greeting, and possibly a prayer. Your smile and that prayer can go a long way in twenty seconds. You might never know just how it impacted someone's day. And it might be best not to know.

Impact eternity in twenty seconds? God knows who needed the smile or He knew you needed one. Have you ever thought of a smile and a greeting as a heavenly experience? Now you know why you have those facial muscles. How about getting those muscles in shape today? When greeting a stranger, could it be an angel? Something more for you to ponder.

God bless,

Marty