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| Grandboy (runner on the right)
"...let us run with endurance the race that is set before us." (Hebrews 12:1)
"Let us expect
that God is going
to use us.
Let us have the courage
and go forward,
looking to
God to do
great things."
D. L. Moody
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| Wrestling Awards Night Fort Payne High School, 1972 L-R Phillip Glassco, Captain, State 4th place, Most Dedicated, (my superman) Dwight Whitmire, Most Improved Coach Gehrig Giles Russell Durham, State Champ, Booster Most Valuable, Captain
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13)
Yesterday, Jesus turned my writer's block into five more chapters in next year's children's book: Once Upon a Neighborhood, A Fort Payne, Alabama Story.
In anything and everything that is set before you, beloved, call upon the Lord.
"Thanks be to God who give us the
V-I-C-T-O-R-Y
through our Lord Jesus Christ!"
(1 Corinthians 15:57)
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| my brothers (Rocky and Mark) and me Christmas, 1963
"...Come back!..." (Hosea 14:1)
Because as kids we drank ten to fourteen gallons of milk per week, to save money, my mother mixed Carnation dry milk with Pet homogenized milk that the Pet milkman delivered to our doorstep weekly. Every Christmas, the milkman and the paper-lady, who delivered the early morning edition of the Birmingham News, received one of Mama's delicious, orange-glazed pound cakes. She'd baked a third cake for Christmas dinner at our grandparents house on Forest Avenue.
And the point of this story is? We had a good mama, and America sure was different back then.
In Hosea's last words to Israel, the Old Testament Prophet called the people to return to God:
O Israel, come back! Return to your God!
You're down but you're not out.
Prepare your confession
and come back to God.
Pray to Him, "Take away our sin,
accept our confession."
(Hosea 14:1-2 The Message)
O United States of America, come back! Return to your God! You're down but you're not out. Prepare your confession and come back to God! Perhaps God will heal our waywardness and give us a fresh start.
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| Grandboy's Cross-Country Team
"Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" (1 John 5:5)
Friday night, superman and I went to see the new movie: "Overcomer." So good! Two thumbs up!!! This family-friendly film about a teenage runner with asthma is a must see.
In the New Testament book of First John, the Apostle John describes the overcomer life for believers in Jesus Christ. The Moody Bible Commentary says: "The individual born of God overcomes the wicked world. The divinely implanted nature and new life within enable one to gradually and more successfully overcome sin."
Are you born of God by faith in His Son, Jesus, beloved? Then remember, you are an overcomer. Victory belongs to Jesus and those who belong to Him!
(And go see the movie, "Overcomer.")
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| Mandy and our Rebecca sisters-in-love
"Don't just pretend to love others. Really love them."
(Romans 12:9)
For years, I had the wrong mindset—well, heart-set is a better diagnosis. I looked at people that God dropped into our lives to help as "assignments," but God has taught me to count them as true friends—brothers and sisters in Christ. Thank You, Lord Jesus.
Beloved, "love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other...When God's people are in need, be ready to help them. Always eager to practice hospitality." (Romans 12:10,12)
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| Grandboy and sweet, old Gabe
"I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." (Phil. 4:13)
On Tuesday, one of our three-year-old grandboys (two of the six boys are three-year-olds) got the wheel of his plastic lawn mower hung in the soccer net. After his mom tried unsuccessfully to untangled the tire with one hand and hold on to ten-month-old babygrand with the other, she said, "I don't think we can get it out today, Buddy." To which, her three-year-old boy replied, "Uh-huh, Mama! We can do all things through Christ who strengthens you."
So, there you go.
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| my daddy 1958
"The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his ways." (Psalm 37:23)
When our favorite son-in-law came to Phillip to ask for our Rebecca's hand in marriage, he brought with him a ten year plan. Years 1-5: grad school. Years 5-7: first baby.
Toward Stephen and Rebecca's first anniversary, they called and read a little poem: "Our plans have failed; God's plan has prevailed." Grandbaby #1 arrived seven and a half months later, and by their sixth anniversary, we had three grand and wonderful grands.
In the book of Acts, Chapter 16, Paul and Silas went from town to town instructing and encouraging believers. They traveled through Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in Asia at that time. Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go. So instead, they went to the seaport of Troas. That night, Paul had a vision: "Come over to Macedonia and help us!" The missionaries left at once, believing that God was calling them to preach the Good News there.
When plans fail, beloved, trust God. Eagerly listen. Let Jesus order your steps according to His good plans and purposes.
"A man's heart plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps." (Proverbs 16:9) |
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| my boys and grandboys
"Let everything that has breath praise the LORD." (Psalm 150:6)
Oh, Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder consider all the things that You have done, my heart is filled with praise and thanksgiving.
Thank You for my boys that You grew into mighty men of God, who are raising their boys in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
Thank You for my girl that You grew into a beautiful woman of God, who is raising her children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
Thank You for my Phillip, my love and my friend, the wise and generous patriarch of our family, .
Thank You, Lord, for sending rain upon our dry and thirsty land yesterday. You are the only One who can water every flower pot, patch of grass, and standing tree all at the same time!
Most of all, thank You, Father, for sending Your Son, Jesus. Thank You, Jesus, that although You are fully God, You emptied Yourself of Your divine privileges, taking the form of a bond-servant and being made into the likeness of men. Thank You for humbling Yourself and becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross, and for rising again that we may have forgiveness of sins and eternal life in the Kingdom of God.
For this reason, God highly exalted You, Lord Jesus, and bestowed upon You the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus, every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father! Amen and amen!
What are you thankful for, beloved?
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| grandboy cousins Coosa River Farm
"He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness will be a protective shield." (Psalm 91:4)
On Saturday at the cabin, when babygrand's bib fell to the floor, his three-year-old cousin picked it up and said, "Here's your cover upper."
In Psalm 91, the psalmist encourages readers to find their refuge in God. The Moody Bible Commentary describes God's protection in verse four as gentle and warm like a mother bird sheltering her young. Jesus used the same imagery in Matthew 23:37 when He cried, "Jerusalem, Jerusalem! She who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, yet you were not willing!"
Beloved, today, live under the protection of the Most High and dwell in the shadow of the Almighty—your Cover Upper.
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| Our Looney-Tunes family 2019
"And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God's mysterious plan that the Good News is for the Jews and the Gentiles alike." (Ephesians 6:19)
I texted my favorite children's-minister and son-in-law at the beginning of 21 days of prayer and asked, "Stephen, what may I pray for you?"
His answers: Romans 12. What a powerful passage to pray!
And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead for you as well:
Oh, Lord, help my brothers and sisters in Christ give their bodies to You as an act of worship because of all You have done for all of us. Help them not conform to the ways of this world but be transformed by the renewing of their minds so they will know Your good and perfect will.
Help them stay humble, not thinking better of themselves than they really are. Help them use their gifts by Your grace for building up others and Your church. Help them love others well, hate wrong, hold fast to what is good, and take delight in honoring others.
Help them not be lazy, but hard workers, serving You with enthusiasm. Help them rejoice in hope, be patient in trouble, and keep on praying and praying and praying. Help them be generous and helpful to others in need and help them pursue hospitality.
Empower them to bless and pray for those who curse them and to rejoice with happy people, and weep with those who are sad. Help them never pay back evil with evil and, as much as depends on them, be at peace with everyone.
Help them never take revenge but leave that to You, the righteous God. If an enemy is hungry, help them feed them. If an enemy is thirsty, please help them give a cup of cool water.
And, finally, Lord God, may these, my brothers and sisters, never be conquered by evil, but in Your mighty power, may they conquer evil with good!
In Jesus' name I pray,
Amen and amen!
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| Background: my mother and daddy Foreground: my Rebecca (L) and niece, Tamara (R) 1984
"Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling a few things...Come and share your Master's joy!" (Matthew 25:21)
You know the story. Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives when the disciples came to Him privately with burning questions. In Matthew chapter 25, through parables, Jesus describes to them the kingdom of heaven.
You may recall the "parable of the talents" (talent = a unit of coinage) in verses 14 through 30—the story of a master who gives three servants various amounts of money before going away for a long time.
The story concludes with two of the servants doubling what was given unto their care and receiving the praise and reward of the master. The third servant accuses the generous and kind master of being a hard, harsh man and admits he did absolutely nothing with that which was entrusted unto him. This lazy man was then cast into outer darkness, a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth.
If you view the parable as a moral tale about how we should spend our money or use God-given talents, it makes no sense that the third servant is punished so severely. However, if you listen, really listen, to this parable through the filter of a description of the kingdom of heaven, where God rules, reigns, and has all authority, then you discover the point of the story is not the things given but the response of the servants to the Master—Almighty God.
Two servants honored the Master and bore fruit for His glory on their God-given path of life. The third servant belittled and disrespected the Master and squandered his God-given life of opportunities and responsibilities. The end, there of, was death.
Proverbs 14:12 says: "There is a way that seems right to man, but the end is the way of death."
Therefore, beloved, walk with reverence the path of life God has for you. "Enter through the narrow gate [Jesus Christ]. For wide is the gate and broad is the path that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the path is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it." (Matthew 7:13-14)
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| grand-brothers BMX strider champions
"Friends, this world is not your home, so don't make yourselves too cozy in it." (1 Peter 2:11 The Message)
His whole family walked 5-year-old grandboy to the classroom yesterday—his first day of kindergarten. As they were leaving, his 3-year-old brother/buddy burst into tears and said, "He won't have fun here. Take him home!"
What do you think of when you hear the word home, beloved? Granted, their are tragic exceptions, but for the most part, home is our safe place where the ones who love us most live.
In the book of Hebrews, the writer said, "For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come. Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to His name." (Hebrews 13:14-15)
Jesus said, "Beloved, don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in Me. There is more than enough room in My Father's home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am." (John 14:1-3)
Life not fun these days, beloved? Don't let your heart be troubled. When everything is ready, King Jesus will come again and take us home—our safe place where the Ones who love us most live.
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| grandboy and his teacher
"Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that need not be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth." (2 Timothy 2:15)
Today's the big day: 5-year-old grandboy's first day of kindergarten. I remember in living color his daddy's first day of kindergarten in Bogalusa, Louisiana, 1988—walking toward the school carrying his little lunch box and tightly holding his first-grader sister's hand. I cried like a baby.
Unlike most children's classroom experience around the world, however, this grandboy, as well as our fourth-grader grandboy in Indiana, will be taught God's word, the Bible, because they are students in Christian schools. Thank You, Lord Jesus, and please watch over all the students and teachers this year in public and private schools. Put Your hedge of protection round about them and fill them with Your knowledge and godly wisdom. Help them not be conformed to the bad ways of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of their minds so they will know Your good and perfect will. Teach them to respect and obey authority, to walk not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor join in with mockers. Train them to live by Your golden rule: to treat others the way they want to be treated. Plant in these boys and girls hearts a delight in You and Your word of truth. May they grow to be mighty men and women of God, who love you, obey Your voice, and hold fast to you, all the days of their lives. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen and amen.
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| grands 2011ish
"I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and let your heart take courage; yes, wait for the LORD." (Psalm 27:13-14)
Years ago, we walked through the sorrowful valley of loving a prodigal child. At the end of that valley, I believe the Lord gave me a short Bible study to pass on to other mothers of prodigals.
Got a kid on the run, beloved? Be strong. Let your heart take courage. God is able to turn the most stubborn of prodigals around. Email me at: misjill413@aol.com for a free copy of "The Prodigal's Mother."
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| Grandboy and Granddaddy: building 2018
"Enlarge the place of your tent; stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, spare not; lengthen your cords and strengthen your pegs. For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left and your descendants will possess nations and will resettle the desolate cities." (Isaiah 54:2-3)
During last January's 21 days of prayer, the Lord brought Isaiah 54:2-3 to my attention.
According to the Moody Bible Commentary, this passage records God's promise of salvation to Israel. The phrases: Enlarge the place of your tent...lengthen your cords and strengthen your pegs, depict expansion and direct God's people to the Lord's promise that Israel will one day widen their borders and take control of the nations.
This passage is also applicable to the Kingdom of heaven, which God is enlarging, stretching out, lengthening, and strengthening as more and more people around the globe come to faith in Jesus Christ.
Oh, Lord, make me a kingdom vessel—a tool in Your mighty hands to enlarge, stretch out, lengthen, and strengthen Your kingdom. May I see every person I encounter and everything I do and every place I go as Your building opportunity. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen and amen.
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| grandboy 2018 "But instead, they give me poison for food..." (Psalm 69:21)
Ding!
Text: "I've lost 7 pounds already! And am feeling better by the day.
Reply: "Woohoo! I'm so proud of you!!! I'm learning more and more what is poison to my body."
And what's poison? Processed sugar, for one, as well as processed foods in general. My Rebecca says, "White bread will make you dead."
Beloved, "do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body." (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
So, let's clean the temple. Throw out those twinkies and poptarts. Bypass the pizza and fries and burgers and cokes, and fill the temple of God with real food: fresh veggies, fresh fruit, and healthy protein.
Grilled dill-sesame salmon and butternut squash
Salmon Recipe:
1. Rub both sides of salmon lightly with extra-virgin olive oil on .
2. Lightly season top side with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder.
3. Generously sprinkle top side with dried dill and sesame seeds.
4. On preheated grill, cook salmon 4 to 5 minutes. Flip and cook an additional 4 to 5 minutes.
Butternut Squash:
1. Cut squash in half lengthwise.
2. Remove seeds
3. Lightly season with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder.
4. Place halves face-down in large skillet.
5. Saute for 3 to 4 minutes in a dribble of coconut oil or olive oil or grass-fed butter.
6. Add 3/4 cup water
7. Cover
8. Simmer for 30 to 45 minutes to preferred texture.
9. To serve: scoop from peeling if soft. Slice into pieces if more firm.
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| My brother, Mark 1958
"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him." (1 Corinthians 2:9)
My mama and daddy said that my brother, Mark, came into this world with an overactive imagination. Even as a little tot, they often found him jumping around a dark living room in the middle of the night on some great, imaginary adventure. In church, if he closed his eyes and started fidgeting, Mama would grab his hands and hold them still. "So people won't think there's something wrong with him," she'd say. One time, when Mark let out a blood-curdling scream, our folks rushed to see what was wrong. Mark said, "I was imagining opening the closet door and seeing monsters. One was so scary, I yelled."
In Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, he quotes the prophet Isaiah in saying that not even the most vivid imagination can envision the out-of-this-world, wonderful things God, in His infinite wisdom, has prepared for His children.
On this 4th day of 21 days of prayer, beloved, put your trust in the all-wise God, who loves you and is preparing you for all He has prepared for you.
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| my daughter-in-law and grands
"And He said, 'How shall we picture the kingdom of God?...It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds that are upon the soil, yet when it is sown, it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and forms large branches; so that the birds of the air can nest under its shade." (Mark 4:26-32)
Once upon a time in a real place called earth, God made everything, and "God looked over everything He had made, and He saw that it was very good." (Genesis 1:31) The kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of earth were united in perfect harmony.
One sad day, the man, Adam, and his wife, Eve, that God made did not listen to God and ate from the tree whose fruit He commanded them not to eat. God said, "The ground is cursed because of you. God banished them from the Garden of Eden." (Genesis 4:17, 23) The kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of earth separated.
Many, many years later, "though [Jesus] was God...He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave; and was born a human being." (Philippians 2:6-7) Jesus began to preach, "Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" (Matthew 4:17) Jesus came to rescue the fallen world separated from God. The kingdom of heaven stepped back into the kingdom of earth. Isn't that Good News!
Before Jesus returned to heaven, He said, "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be My witnesses, telling people about Me everywhere." (Acts 1:8) And to this day, the kingdom of heaven continues to spread across the kingdom of earth through God's witnesses.
And one day, maybe soon, we'll see "a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth will disappear, and the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven...All the nations will bring their glory and honor into the city. Nothing evil will be allowed to enter...but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life." (Revelation 21:1-2, 26-27)
On that day, the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of earth will be fully reunited.
And all who live in the united kingdom will live happily ever after.
The End?
No, the Beginning!
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| My grandgirl a.k.a. "Elizabeth" in Mr. Greenleaf's Unforgettable Summer A Willowkins Christmas Story A Chancellor Ferry Tale Sea Billows Professor Sparrow and the Clear Creek History Mystery (illustration by talented artist: Dawn Copeland)
"Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done." (Matthew 6:9-10)
For 21 days every January and 21 days every August, our church and hundreds and hundreds of other congregations around the world join forces and fervently pray to Father God in the name of Jesus Christ, His Son.
Jesus said, "At all times you ought to pray and never give up." (Luke 18:1)
James, the brother of Jesus, said: "Elijah was a human just like us, and yet when he prayed hard that it wouldn't rain, it didn't—not even a drop for three and a half years. Then he prayed that it would rain, and it did. The showers came and everything started growing again." (James 5:17-18)
Beloved, I beg you to join the heavenward chorus. Invite your family, your friends, and your church to 21 days of fervent prayer.
Prayer services online all day:
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| My Phillip Sanibel Island February, 2019
"So then, my dear friends, stand firm and steady. Keep busy always in your work for the Lord, since you know that nothing you do in the Lord's service is ever useless." (1 Corinthians 15:58)
I spent my yesterday writing and writing and writing on next year's children's book. This morning, I awoke to little demons whispering in my ear, "The story is silly. What makes you think you can write?"
My deflated soul opened the Bible and read 1 Corinthians 15:58—God's wind to my sails.
Thank You, Lord Jesus! "March on with courage, my soul!" (Judges 5:21)
Discouraged, beloved? Open the Bible and let God's powerful word fill your deflated soul.
"The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before you. They shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways." (Deuteronomy 28:7)
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| my beloved brothers and me 1959
"God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God our love grows more perfect..." (1 John 4:16-17) "Let brotherly love continue." (Hebrews 13:1) "Be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing." (1 Peter 3:8-9)
Today's devotion by Turning Point Ministry, Dr. David Jeremiah:
According to Hebrews 13:1, we must live in brotherly love. We're to love everyone with the love of Christ, but Hebrews 13:1-8 gives us five people we must love in particular.
Let's take Hebrews 13:1 seriously and let brotherly love continue.
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