Walking by faith, harder than it seems....

 Tell the people of Israel to turn back and camp across from Pi-Hahiroth near Baal-Zephon, between Migdol and the Red Sea.[a] 3 The king[b] will think they were afraid to cross the desert and that they are wandering around, trying to find another way to leave the country. 4 I will make the king stubborn again, and he will try to catch you. Then I will destroy him and his army. People everywhere will praise me for my victory, and the Egyptians will know that I really am the Lord. Exodus 14:2-5

Walking with God and trusting Him after tragedy is hard.

In my dream this morning I thought of the former slaves of Pharaoh in the sands of the desert and how frighten many of them must have been; especially when they were asked to turn back and camp between the Migdol and the Red Sea.

On one side was the promise land, filled with mild and honey and everything good God had promised them and on the opposite side was certain death at the hands of the Egyptian troops.

It must have been incredibly difficult for these former Hebrew slaves to be told to sit and wait. Wait for what? To be slaughtered? Many probably thought it would be better to walk back, with hands up, and resume their lives of drudgery, physical pain, and death. Many thought 'what's the use' because God is just going to leave us again.

When God parted the Red sea many of them were once again scared. After all, they were desert people who had never really experienced water. Many were afraid of going through the water because of the fear of drowning.
 Yet, they had no choice. 

On the back side they could see the Egyptian's army  approaching them. They realized that if they chose to stay they would all die. They had to trust God enough to believe that as they were walking between the walls of the Red sea that the wall of water would not close in on them.

Walking they  did.

If you can imagine for a second that it was your family that was walking and running through between these  two walls of water and how frighten you became when you saw these huge fish swimming behind the curtain  of water and thinking, 'what if God doesn't hold back the water until I get to the other side--we will all die.' 

A momentary thought pops into your head to just turn around with hands up and resuming life as a slave again.

But you keep going forward toward the land promised you. 

As you get closer  to that promise land you sense that the Egyptian troops were now between the two standing water. You  could hear the the wheels of the chariots going faster. The sound  of their horses trots was enough to sicken you.  You  had this uncomfortable feeling that they  could see  the glimpses of your people and in their mind they would claim victory in the name of Pharaoh. 

Then it happened.

Just as the final Hebrew slave made  it on dry land the two walls of the Red sea collapse on the Egyptians. You could hardly believe it. You realized you just witnessed God's miracle. He indeed rescued you just as he said he would.

Our minds, it seems,  are have difficulty seeing the things of God. Fear seems to be our greatest strong hold that keeps us from trusting. 

Especially after tragedy when you have all  sorts of troubling thoughts circulating in your mind. 

Yet, God's promises are true for us today just as they were in the days of Pharaoh. 

Whatever has happened to you God wants to demonstrate in your life miracles and he wants to use your redemptive story to bring others into God's kingdom. 

One more thing. 

We have the gift of the Spirit of God that was given to us after His son, Jesus Christ, ascended into heaven. Today, God is using His church to help you learn   to walk by faith. Trusting is simply placing one foot in front of the other and honoring God every Sabbath day!

God truly isn't  going to let go of you.

Some thoughts on the recent Hyvee's grand opening that reminded me of what heaven will be like

Romans 15:13New International Version (NIV)

13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

To say I was excited about the opening of the brand new HyVee grocery store is an understatement.  Like a giggly boy on Christmas morning I went, not once, but   twice in the same day. Both times there were hordes of people waiting their turn just to enter the parking lot. Since the church our family attended was just down the street   the parking lot was filled with overflow traffic.

 When I finally found a parking spot when a business man pointed over to where his car was parked I pulled in. As I walked   toward the store the atmosphere was both festive and joy filled at the same time. Kids were handed colorful balloons, Adults tried the free samples throughout the store while taking in the sights and sounds of this new store.  Every where  I looked I saw looks of wonderment, smiles, and laughter. Every where I turn I saw throngs of people.My eyes glanced in all directions as though I had never experience anything like it before. 

This place had everything from the in store restaurant, with it's own entrance, a in store dry cleaners, a bank, a medical clinic and more. I  remember just one year ago  the area being just a empty lot with memories of the former K-Mart store.

Then I   thought.

Grand  opening, hordes of people, smiles and happiness, balloons and happy children, are what heaven is going to be like when we, as believers in Jesus Christ, take our final breath. 

Then I  thought some more.

I wonder if this was what my daughter, my mom and dad and some recent friends from New Hope Church experienced when they took their final  breath and the first breath in this same kind of celebratory atmosphere I was experiencing entering this HyVee grocery store? 

Then I remembered that the words in Revelations 21:4 about "and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be death; there will no longer be sorrow and anguish, or crying, or pain; for the former order of things has passed away.” I was reminded that heaven is going to be place where suffering and the pain of this world will not exist. 


I was reminded that like this celebratory atmosphere in this grand opening of this earthly store there will be far more celebrating when we get to heaven.

Heaven will be one continuous grand opening for new believers just entering the front doors being greeted by the King himself, Jesus Christ.

"Well done my good and faithful servant " will be the greeting given when the heavenly doors are opened to the wonderful amazement of the sights and sounds.

Then I recalled the words of Jesus found in 2 Corinthians 4:17 *MSB):

and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be death; there will no longer be sorrow and anguish, or crying, or pain; for the former order of things has passed away.

Our God is so awesome that He was willing through the ultimate sacrifice of his son, Jesus Christ, to wipe all of our slates clean so that none of our sin exists. He made us clean as pure white snow so that when we take our final breath we would experience the joys of heaven, much like I was enjoying the sights and sounds, the festive atmosphere of this simple HyVee grand opening!

One day on a walk to defeat ALS I met a family................................

11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Ecclesiastes 3:11

Just as the words to this song suggest God takes our lives, filled with chaos and brokenness and makes it beautiful, he helps us re-write those tragedies so that something good comes out of it. 

One dad, I met on the walk for ALS had such a story. 

The dad was pushing his 8-year-old son on his adaptive bike and I complimented the dad on the great job his son was doing peddling the bike. He had a single handle behind the bike and it was obvious to me that he was helping propel the bike forward while his son was using his muscles peddling. 

The dad began telling me 'the story'. They were on a cruise enjoying the pool when they lost sight of their son. By the time they found him he had been underwater for 15 minutes and it took 15 more minutes to revive him. They got him to a trauma 1 hospital where he spent many months.The initial prognosis was that their son would never make it out of the hospital. 

God had other plans for his life and so he recovered enough to leave the hospital. He was able to live a much different life than the one he had before the near-drowning. On a cognitive level their son experience brain damage that made it hard for him to talk.

He then shared with me the positives to come out of this tragedy. The family was so impacted by the adaptive equipment that their son was benefitting from that they decided to start a foundation to raise funds so that other families can afford that same adaptive equipment.

 God makes things beautiful out of the brokenness of our lives.
Every day I see beauty out of brokenness.

A young Grandma got to hold her first grandchild after caring for many months her terminally ill mother-in-law.
Groups of people on the ALS walk uniting to support each other after a loss of a friend from ALS.
Memory markers along the path of the walk to keep the memories of their loved ones alive.
A group of grieving mothers combining forces to strengthen our DUI laws.

God makes all things beautiful.

 After tragedy church no longer becomes just a country club filled with people looking to fill their mornings with fellowship.  It becomes more like a hospital where those who have been emotionally wounded and marred by tragedy can go to find the hope they need to make all things beautiful again.  

Those who have experience tragedy understand what I am talking about.  We may not know until later God's redemptive story out of our tragedy, but the stories I have heard recently suggest that he is working on yours. 

  Until then we just have to trust God that he knows what is good for our lives.

Dr. Ben Carson Presidential Announcement Full Speech (C-SPAN)

“But Jesus looked at them and said to them, ‘With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’” Matthew 19:26

Isn't it just like God to have a  sense of humor regarding  the candidates that are running for President. The first Republican debates were like that as we saw Donald Trump, the supposedly   front  runner coming out only to look like a buffoon in the end.

Meanwhile, God saved his best for our country in the form of Dr. Ben Carson.  For those who do not know Dr. Carson he is a Christian man who came from nothing to lead a successful life. Dr. Carson came from poverty who was encouraged, as a child, to read  one book a day. That discipline lead Dr. Carson to excel in America';s educational system all the way to earning his medical degree and becoming a sought after neuro-surgeon to real young children with serious medical needs.

Some may ask what makes him qualified to be President of the United States. To that I add Dr.  Carson has more experience in collaboration and management than many of these politicians in office;  yet, he understands the struggles that people have  in this life.

 As a surgeon he understands the pain  on the faces of parents as  they wave goodbye to their child being wheeled on the gurney toward the doors marked 'surgery'.Dr. Carson has earned more degrees than most of us have earned in a lifetime and he challenges others to put down the  hopelessness and pick up the laptop and better themselves in the classroom.

 Education, he has learned is the secret to breaking the cycle of dependency. Dr. Carson is also prolife and in one of  his speeches he said that he was the guy that Margaret Sanger didn't think he deserved to live. As Dr. Ben Carson  gains popularity and gives people of all races hope that success isn't as elusive as   their govenment tells them, I believe the abortionists at Planned Parenthood and the liberal left who espouse dependency will one day be sitting in the ashes of past abortions and past failed policieswondering what just happened.

 God certainly does have a sense of humor bringing a man to the forefront  that represents the American dream, not the dependent America that the current administrion espouses.

 Join with me by getting on the Dr.Ben Carson campaign bus for his presidenntial run to the White house in 2016.

He is  the real deal!

Donald Trump would be the wrong choice for President and here is why....

 

                                                      Taming the Tongue

3 Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.

3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. James 3:1-5

Like milllions of American's I watched the Republican debates last night. I loved Dr. Ben Carson and Carly Fiona and a number of the other candidates on the stage. I was appalled by Donald Trump's bluntness and his attitude that 'I know damn well what is best for America and I will do what needs  to be done attitude.' 

We can avoid 4 years of unnecessary grief by electing the right man or woman to  the white house in 2016, but the wrong one, I am afraid, will only aggravate the world scene.  Just before I wrote this I noticed that CNN announced that Trump won the debate, but knowing CNN's  liberal bent I question how they came to that conclusion.

 Like Trump, Dr.BenCarson http://www.cbn.com/700club/guests/bios/ben_carson_md_052914.aspx and Carly Fiona https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKXWKA2KOqE who have done very well in the private sector and came from relative nothing. . Donald Trump had his money only because his dad made the vast  majority  of it in business and he simply inherited it.  He made millions more on  the backs of working people at his Trump casinos and more on the backs of retirees who have nothing better to do than spend money at those same gambling palaces.

Should Donald Trump be the next President of the United States? My  opinion would be no We need a President that isn't going to inflame the other world leaders  with innuendos and vulgarity. There is a widely circulating youtube video highlighting Trump's vulgarity I encourage everyone to watch. The  language he uses in some of those videos illustrates for me that he is unfit for public office. We need someone who can control their tongue and we need someone that holds  our conservative values.Donald Trump is clearly not that person. In this captivating speech at a political rally in Phoenix you will see whyDr.  Ben Carson is the man of the hour we need in the white house. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAlBJjOYx2w.  I personally wouild love to see a Dr.Ben Carson/Carly Fiona  ticket.

So do yourself a favor   and seriously consider avoiding at all costs  any chance of votiing for Trump. The world's volatility is far too important not to elect a man that will carry out the people's mandate without fear that Trump's fit of rage wll cause him to press the nuclear war  button by 'mistake'

When he does that it will be too late my friends.

The dangers of negative talk

F

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Philippians 4:8

It seems that wherever we go we are bombarded by negative stimuli from every direction. Our conversations with people can be filled with sarcasm laced statements that do nothing but damage the human mind, body and spirit. 

I learned that we are all capable of producing these negative thoughts and statements. In the verse above I remember reading other translations that emphasize the word 'dwell'. To think or dwell on these things is to avoid things that contribute to the negativity.  Dwelling on something positive and good is to help the body to maintain it's equilibrium.

What are we watching on television? What websites are we clicking our likes to and what thoughts are we posting for the world to see?

 Election year is the one time where I see a lot negative posts from every direction. Negative posts about democrats, republicans, independents it doesn't matter.Those posts have a tendency to drag people down by attempting to invalidate the person..

 For example, say you post something you see on a political site that get's your gander up and increases your anger about the said object you decide to re-post it for everyone else to see of which others will comment their own views of the subject. You see the response you are getting and this only serves to increase your blood pressure and your other metabolic symptoms. Before you know it you are getting a massive headache. The headache, my friends is the outward symptom of the negative thought process.

I remember reading something where the best approach to any problem or complaint is to state the problem, but then to come up with the solution to the problem.  Politics is a strange bed fellow. We have a populace that hold some pretty deep political beliefs and some will always believe their opinions are right no matter what the other person says to persuade them otherwise.

  As we go about our day we need to be respectful of other's opinions and not try to always be right in every argument. When I have a conversation with people I will try to include the words, "I respect your opinion, but I also want to respectfully disagree and here is why"   When I use those words I am still validating the other person, but I am setting the foundation to express my opinion in a  manner that they will likely listen.

  Finally, I have memories of growing up in a family with my dad holding one political belief and mom holding the opposite. Both of my parents could not be persuaded to see the other side and at times there were heated arguments over who was going to be the next President in the white house. How much simpler it would have been if they had use those words " I respect your opinion, but I respectfully disagree and here is why."

I guess this is why I like reading the bible which for me are filled with very edifying words that can help us to keep our negative thoughts in check

We are all guilty of this very thing and all of us can find ways to express the positives each day. I know if all of us were to focus on positives of this life we just may exude the sweet aroma of Christ that may just very well draw, not repel others from the cross.

Episode #12: Families Coping with suicide-Grief Relief Television

When I look outside my window after supper I noticed that the sun is setting much more quicker. Pretty soon we will begin to suffer from vitamin D deficiency, a vitamin we get from the sunlight that plays on important role in our moods. As the sun sets earlier and earlier our tendency to become depressed increases as well,  The lack of vitamin D contributes to our ability to work through grief and sorrow issues, including when someone we love takes their life.http://www.webmd.com/depression/news/20120627/vitamin-d-deficiency-linked-to-depression

My wife and I know several people who have taken their lives. We are in touch with the survivors of these loved ones and we understand the incredible pain that wracks their bodies on a daily basis. It isn't unusual for suicide survivors to feel guilt and the wouldofshouldofcouldof's in the aftermath of the suicide. This episode you are about to watch will give suicide survivors coping strategies for coping with suicide.

On my website there is a list of support groups suicide survivors can access. You can find this and other faith stories at www.soaringonwingsofeagles.org  

If you are a suicide survivor I want to encourage you and remind you that 'you're going to get through this journey. You are not responsible for the actions of your loved one, nor do you have to spend the rest of your life second guessing those actions. 

Toward the end of this episode the hosts introduce some people who help love ones with creating quilts in honor of loved ones who died. Here is that link:http://www.afsp.org/coping-with-suicide-loss/honor-a-loved-one/the-memory-quilts

The Pursuit for pleasure in order to avoid pain may best explain why we go to great lengths to avoid funerals

am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. John 14:27 NLT

In Freudian psychology, the pleasure principle (German: Lustprinzip) is the instinctual seeking of pleasure and avoiding of pain in order to satisfy biological and psychological needs.[1]Specifically, the pleasure principle is the driving force guiding the id. [2]

In only a few hours my wife and I will arise to attend the service for a long time teacher at the school she works at. I was reminded of the pleasure principle many times over the course of several years since our daughter passed away in her sleep. In those years there were very few people who wanted to travel the journey of our loss. One guy I work with said bluntly, " I don't do funerals just too painful". Perhaps the pleasure principle coined by Sigmund Freud explains his justification. Over the years we have asked good friends to join us at the grave of our daughter and in the words of one friend "that is something that you and your husband should do."

Most of us would rather do enjoyable things than to help a bereaved person remember their loved one. Most would rather send a condolence card with the message, " so sorry for your loss. I wished I could be there, but ",  We would rather seek pleasure than face pain.

My Christian walk taught me that facing pain is just as important as seeking pleasure. When a loved one dies the worse thing you can do is to attempt to bury it deep, but like a bubbling volcano the emotional lava erupts from the top when the pressure becomes too much.  Unfortunately, we are taught in our American culture to stop talking about the loved one after a year because if you do they will think you are stuck in your grief.

To the family who lost their mom way too early I say don't try to deny the pain of your grief. Don't deny that it is there with a happy face and a simple "I am doing well thank you" when deep down the raw of emotions are bubbling. To everyone who misses their loved one I say lean into your grief and recognize that those emotions will come in like the waves of the sea. Some will come in with a thunderous roar while others will roll in with barely a wimper.

Making the decision whether you attend or not attend a funeral shouldn't be based one's desire to avoid pain. Attendance at a service isn't about you and your need to seek pleasure. Attendance is all about being there for the family who misses their loved one terribly. It is also about opening the door for opportunities to show support  in the coming weeks, months and years of their loss.

It is, after all, what Jesus would want us to do.

A lesson on the importance of talking about our pain through Celibrity news

I have learned that by talking about our grief  as often as we can the less likely it will lead to other problems. when I read the story of actor Brian Keith, better known as Uncle Bill, who took his own life because of his health problems and the suicide of his daughter I decided to post on this blog to educate people of the dangers of burying your pain. Burying one's grief only leads to post traumatic stress and a complicated grief.    

The Suicide Death of Brian Keith
by Frank Wilkins    

America's Uncle Bill Ends His Own Life

Brian Keith, who became known to millions of Americans in the late '60s as Uncle Bill, was born on November 14, 1921, in Bayonne, New Jersey. The son of Robert Keith and Helena Shipman, Keith eventually went on to work with such film industry greats as John Huston, Peter Bogdanovich, Bette Davis, Marlon Brando and Sebastian Cabot. Although he started acting at the tender age of 3, it wasn't until he was well into his forties that Keith found his primary claim to fame as everybody's favorite sitcom uncle to child actors Anissa Jones and Johnny Whitaker on television's Family Affair.
Broadway, then Hollywood
Keith served in the U.S. Marine corps during World War II but resumed his acting career upon his return to the States after the war's end. Following a Broadway hit in 1946 and again in '48, Keith went on to be in such films as Arrowhead and Five Against the House.
As television began to become a bigger player on the entertainment scene, Keith began appearing in many shows during the '50s. His first starring television role came in 1955 in the short-lived The Crusader. He went on to be cast in many more films including the highly successful, The Young Philadelphians.
Family Affair
Many more TV and film appearances, including The Parent Trap, The Wind and the Lion, and The Brian Keith Show lead up to his most successful foray into the acting world, the long running and award winning television series, Family Affair. Keith played opposite Sebastian Cabot as a Manhattan bachelor and guardian to Buffy, Jody, and Sissy, played by Anissa Jones, Johnny Whitaker, and Kathy Garver respectively. The highly successful series ran on CBS from 1966-1971 and was a ratings blockbuster at the time, placing in the top five of all shows in its three-year run. Keith was nominated for no less than 3 Emmys for his role as Uncle Bill.
Hardcastle and McCormick
After the cancellation of the series following the '71 season, Keith continued his television and film career with numerous bit roles until 1983 when he garnered the lead role in another television series, Hardcastle and McCormick, which ran from 1983-86. Keith played retired judge Milton Hardcastle who, accompanied by his last defendant, follows up on cases that where dismissed due to technicalities.
1997, a Tough Year
Keith continued acting throughout the '80s and '90s, making bit appearances on such shows as Touched By an Angel and Walker, Texas Ranger. But by 1997, Keith's life had begun to unravel. He was diagnosed with lung cancer and emphysema, despite having quit his smoking habit more than ten years earlier. Brutal chemotherapy treatments began to take an emotional toll on Keith. In April of 1997 his daughter, Daisy, committed suicide in her Hollywood Hills home and reports had Keith suffering financial problems for the last few years. His daughter's death would be too much for the actor to overcome.
Failing Health and Financial Troubles
On June 24, 1997 at 10:13 a.m. family members alerted police to Keith's Malibu home at 23449 Malibu Colony Rd. The 75-year old actor had placed a gun to his head and pulled the trigger, ending his downward spiral of failing health, financial troubles and depression caused by the loss of his daughter. Brian Keith is survived by his wife since 1970, Victoria Young, who played Nurse Puni on The Brian Keith Show. Unlike his daughter, Keith left a handwritten note in which he wrote "The end is here. I'm finished. The pain is too much. Now it's time for me to join our little Daisy. She needs me. She didn't want to be without me here, so she'll have me again over there. Don't be sad. This had to come soon."
Interestingly, Johnny Whitaker spoke with Keith only five days before Keith's death. "He was not feeling well because he had been going through the chemotherapy for his cancer," Whitaker said. "And he'd been having other problems."
Keith's remains are interred above those of his daughter Daisy in Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles.

Following is Brian Keith's formal obituary as it appeared in 1997:

On Tuesday, Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies found Keith's body inside his home at 10:13 a.m., after being alerted to the scene by family members.
"Brian Keith was a generous actor, a kind man and a true friend," said Daniel Hugh Kelly, who costarred with Keith for three seasons on the popular action series Hardcastle & McCormick in the mid-1980s.
Born in November 1921 in Bayonne, New Jersey, Keith's career spanned more than 40 years. In film, he costarred with the likes of Marlon Brando and Liz Taylor ( Reflections in a Golden Eye ) and Burt Reynolds ( Sharky's Machine). He was also dad to Hayley Mills (or, at least, one of her twin selves) in the 1961 classic, The Parent Trap.
On TV, from 1966-71, he was Bill Davis, the rock of the orphaned Family Affair clan--which included child actor stand-outs Johnnie Whitaker and Anissa Jones. (Jones died of a drug overdose in 1976 at the age of 18.) Whitaker, now 37, said Tuesday that he spoke with his onetime TV dad on the telephone about five days before his death. "He was not feeling good because he had been going through the chemotherapy for his cancer," Whitaker said."And he'd been having other problems."
Keith's TV work also included the 1972-74 sitcom, The Brian Keith Show , and Hardcastle & McCormick , where Keith played cranky, crabby Judge Milton "Hardcase" Hardcastle.
Keith is survived by his wife since 1970, Victoria Young, who played Nurse Puni on The Brian Keith Show.

Sujo John: September 11, 2001... A Survivor's Story - CBN.com

Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Matthew 6:19

Thirteen years ago tonight there were business people, men and woman, and families busily packing for their trip aboard United and American Airlines. 

Little children were arguing who would get the window seat. Wives were helping their husbands pack for their trip not realizing that the kiss and the hug they gave each other that night would be their last. 

The pilot terrorists were likely reciting their prayers to Allah looking forward to becoming martyrs for their faith.

September 11, 2001, is a date I will never forget. My daughter was in kindergarten and my son was in the 2nd grade. 

I got the news on my route to work when I was driving on the new 610 Interstate while listening to WCCO when CBS broke in with a special announcement about a small Cessna plane that had crashed into tower number one.

By the time I got to work the small Cessna was changed to a large commercial passenger jet. After arriving to work,  I watched in horror on the television that had been rolled into the break room that a second commercial passenger plane had slammed into tower 2.

Who can forget the faces of people waving flags,  looking for a way out of the towering inferno? Close up images revealed terror on their faces. As the flames got hotter many people jumped to their deaths.  Some alone, and some in pairs holding each other's hands as though they were children going for a walk.

Sujo John, the man featured in the video, had just finished sending an e-mail to a friend of his about believing that God had a plan for his life when he felt tower one shake. 

Sujo John came to America with nothing and landed a dream job in the World Trade tower while his pregnant wife found one in tower 2. As he frantically ran down the stairs he could only think of his pregnant wife wondering if she was able to make it out safely. 

Sujo John was no stranger to grief because when he was much younger he lost his 9-year-old sister to leukemia.

Just as he made it outside he heard a loud rumbling sound of the building imploding. Thinking his wife was probably dead he soon would learn that she was alive only because she got a late start that morning.

The events of 9/11 changed his life forever and gave him a new cause.  Paraphrasing Sujo John, " when you witness thousands of people dying and when you realize that there were Islamic terrorists who were willing to die for their faith then I should be willing to live for Jesus Christ." 

Sujo John heard  God's call to share his story with others.

What 9/11 taught me was the brevity of life. Tragedies happen every day Some die from car accidents, some from drug overdoses, and others from murder-suicides. As I read about those tragic events all I could think of was how people need Jesus.

 Sujo John could have collected his share of the September 11th trust fund money and live the American dream, but he chose to heed the call of God and try to bring others into God's Kingdom,

Who are you living for this day? Are you pursuing fame, fortune, or status? Remember, when life comes to a screeching halt all that will matter is your relationship with Jesus Christ. If you are not sure please pray this prayer.

Dear God in heaven, I come to you in the name of Jesus. I acknowledge to You that I am a sinner, and I am sorry for my sins and the life that I have lived; I need your forgiveness.

I believe that your only begotten Son Jesus Christ shed His precious blood on the cross at Calvary and died for my sins, and I am now willing to turn from my sin.

You said in Your Holy Word, Romans 10:9 that if we confess the Lord our God and believe in our hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead, we shall be saved.

Right now I confess Jesus as the Lord of my soul. With my heart, I believe that God raised Jesus from the dead. This very moment I accept Jesus Christ as my own personal Savior and according to His Word, right now I am saved.

Thank you, Jesus, for your unlimited grace which has saved me from my sins. I thank you, Jesus, that your grace never leads to license, but rather it always leads to repentance. Therefore Lord Jesus transform my life so that I may bring glory and honor to you alone and not to myself.

Thank you Jesus for dying for me and giving me eternal life. AMEN.

Walking in the desert has taught me, like Ray Vanderlaan that God wants to carry the burdens that you have been stuffing along the way of life.

1 But now, this is what the LORD says-- he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.3 For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior Isaiah 43

I was reminded once again of the struggles people carry. The burdens that seem to be so heavy that it causes chaos and brokenness in peoples lives. Watching this walking with God in the desert video reminded me once again the purpose of our desert experiences in our lives and why I needed to walk through that barren waste land when we encountered the worse nightmare of any parent, the loss of a child.

The bible, I have discovered, is a living history book filled with stories of God's love and provision for those who are broken, filled with chaos, wandering aimlessly around the desert.  For it is in the desert that God is able to grab our attention to remind us that He is all we need.  It is in the desert that he provides just enough to get through each day. By this same token it isn't in our prosperity that God grabs us because there are so many distractions that seemingly crowd him out.

I remembered in my younger days going on a boundary water canoe trip, carrying huge a seemingly overloaded Duluth pack wondering why my pack had to be so much heavier than all the others around me. I  remember thinking how there were so many other things I would rather be doing at the moment like attending a sporting event, watching a movie, or riding my bike than being stuck carrying this overloaded pack.  I remember my elation when I finished the trip with a new resiliency knowing that I did it.

In another sense that Duluth pack symbolizes the burdens that we all carry in this life. We suffer a loss and we toss in it all of the emotions associated with that loss. We encounter layers of family dysfunction and we toss that into our pack. As we trudge along in life we toss other kinds of hurts along the way until that is the pack becomes so heavy that it nearly causes us to collapse from the weight. I am reminded by this verse in Matthew 11 with the words of Jesus, For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” as a reminder that no matter what chaos, brokenness, dysfunction we might be carrying  Jesus wants to carry that burden for you as you walk through your desert.

I remember my desert experience in the days, months and years following our loss. I remember the loneliness, the sense of abandonment, the sense of wondering how in the world I would ever survive such  a experience, and how I was going to get my family out the other side without losing any of them. Then I remembered that I can't, but God can. 

Placing one foot in front of the other and looking toward the cross of salvation I lead my family forward though the slippery sands of the desert going from one Sabbath day of worship to the next. I learned from my desert experience that  God will never forsake you, nor leave you  ( Deurteronomy 3:6)

I encourage you that no matter what you are carrying give it over to Jesus Christ. He alone was God's instrument for our salvation. He alone was resurrected. He is our living savior who continues to reside in us  who believe. 

 Your desert experience doesn't have to be your end. No. Your desert experience can be the sign to those around you that God is so real that he brought you out a stronger, more resilient person. 

Your desert experience just may be God's instrument to lead others to salvation!

A simple trip to the local Menard's store lead to a shared memory of our families loss.

May the God who gives endurance and encouragementgive you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, Romans 15:5

When my wife got home from setting up her library in preparation for the start of the new school year the next day we had supper consisting of the labor day tradition of hamburger before going shopping and a celebratory 'Cherries Berries'. 

After  dropping her off at JC Penney's I drove over to Menard's to pick up some thing I needed. As I was walking through the store I ran into a friend I hadn't seen in several years. He was our son's piano teacher and his family got to know our kids going back to the preschool days. 

I was reminded how his family was equally as devastated as our was when they received the news of Maria's untimely demise.  Much of our conversation centered on the inappropriate condolences that many Christian's give to the bereaved.  He understood because when his dad died when he was a young adult and  he heard those condolences. 

Things that we heard that I am sure he had also heard include the following:  (1) the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away,  This condolence has nothing to do with what we were going through at the time of our loss.  In my mind God wouldn't just take a child simply because he wanted a pretty flower in his garden.

 (2) If God wanted to stop her from dying he would have. This makes God into a cruel monster who decides who will live and who  will die and is a condolence that does more damage than helps. My interpretation of the scriptures tells me that we live in a fallen world where mistakes are made that cause sudden death. 

(3) After a year after our friends father died a well meaning friend said to him that maybe he needs to move on after he once again talked about his dad.  I remember hearing this similar phrase from some folks.  It is as though grief is suppose to end at a certain point and we are expected to pack all of our memories of the person  into a box and shove it back into the closet where the memories are not to be mentioned again. 

 Grief has no set timetable. The amount of time it takes to travel that journey depends on the  timetable of the griever. 

 Some things I have learned on this journey are the following: (1) Regardless of how you are feeling from Sunday to Sunday get up and worship the Lord at a church. In my families case it was the weekly rituals of church attendance and fellowship that helped us heal. 

(2) Continue the same rituals of the surviving children.Whatever they were involved in before the loss they must continue after the loss. Rituals are comforting and they provide stability to the grieving child. 

 (3) Be patient with those around you because just as I learned from my friend at the local Menards store there are many that are equally as crushed as the immediate family. (4)  For the schools I recommend that you have a contingency plan subsisting of  professionals skilled in addressing the needs of traumatic grief who will be there should the unthinkable happen.  This final point is so important because of the impact grief can have on the developing brains of the grieving child. Unless their grief needs are addressed many may struggle in school.

I was affirmed tonight by this friend.  He said that he really like the fact that my wife and I continue to talk about Maria and he encouraged me to continue doing so. Thank your Lord for our paths crossing in this store. By the way, I had mentioned to my wife I was going to Best buy but in the last moment decided to shop at the Menard's store. Perhaps it was the gentle nudging of the Holy Spirit that lead our paths to cross? 

God is using a broken country to redeem itself by allowing immigrants from Syria safe entry

“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”  Psalm 27:1

I think everyone of us was following in one way or another the Syrian refugee crisis. We watched in horror as we hear about capsized boats with bodies of little children floating lifelessly to the beaches. Imagine our delight when one country decided to open up it's doors to allow these people in. 

A country, once broken, A country that had to live for decades with the reputation that one evil and sinister man convinced them to elect him to be their leader. A country that convinced them that Jew's, the feeble minded and anyone else that didn't fit the Aryan definition of a fit race should be eliminated.

  When they made the decision it was as though God had allowed these broken people to redeem themselves for their past atrocities. Meanwhile, in America we have political leaders trying to make fodder over such headlines as 'build a border and keep these people out, or 'make the immigrants speak American' or ' we can't allow immigration because some of them may be terrorists'.

Have we forgotten the value of immigrants in this country?  Have we forgotten that it is the immigrants who have started some of the most successful businesses that have employed millions in this country? Have we forgotten that immigrants bring with them new ways of doing things, building things, and coming up with products that make life easier for all of us?

 Since 9/11 we have become a much safer, more secure country than before. Sure, there is always room for improvement and sure we must find away to keep the drug cartels out, but we can still allow immigration at the same time we tighten up security.  Immigrants continue to provide the much needed labor for the millions of unfilled American jobs from the restaurants that provide service to the public to the sugar beet fields of Northwestern Minnesota. Immigrants pay taxes and contribute to the American economy just like the rest of us.

When I heard about Germany responding to the Syrian immigration crisis with compassion I was reminded by another era when America stood on the side lines refusing to respond to a crisis created by World war two until, that is, they could no longer ignore it.  

America  has always been a beacon of hope to millions around the world. and the Statute of Liberty, a gift by the French people, reminds us of this gift with it's phrase, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.”  We must not allow paranoia, despair, and political fodder to make us fearful of immigrants because America is and continues to be a melting pot of many nations coming together creating an even greater nation.  

Today we celebrate these immigrants who have found safe passage in a once broken country.. I applaud  Germany for doing the right thing,  May your  country be blessed with the hard working ingenuity of this new immigrant group! May America rediscover the value of immigrants!

When time doesn't heal all wounds | Dr. Robert K. Ross | TEDxIronwoodSta...

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17

When time doesn't heal all wounds was the topic of Dr. Robert Gross when he spoke at Ironwood state prison.  His topic was on the effects of repeated childhood trauma and how it effects young people and the people they eventually become. Like the previous Ted talk Dr. Gross spoke about the flight or fight response that becomes predominant in a traumatized person when repeated adverse trauma is introduced in their life.

There are many young people who are severely effected by childhood trauma who go to school with  acting out behaviors that result in repeated suspensions from that school.  Dr. Gross said that many of those kids have been traumatized and their repeated acting out is their attempt to get Adults around them to noticed them. They are literally screaming for help.  He urges school officials to stop suspending these kids and make an effort to look past their behaviors at the trauma that lies underneath their skin. You might remember the previous speaker saying that far too many people who see her at her medical clinic actually do not have ADHD when she asked all the right questions and did a thorough history of the person. Instead of ADHD she determined it was a serverely traumatized young person who needed someone to listen to them, not suspend them.

Instead of labeling these kid we ought to take a new approach of understanding young people inflicted with trauma experiences by helping them to learn the art of telling their story as often as it takes to remove the impact of the fight/flight response that has been present in their lives since the onset of the original trauma event.

Dr. Gross discusses the Courage and resiliency concepts in the trauma equation and goes on and describes a group of extremely traumatized mother's who's kids were killed by drunk drivers and going on and become a powerful lobbying group fighting for a change in DUI laws.   I believe that the courage and resiliency Dr. Gross is describing is something God gives us to help us make all things new again. We may not exit our trauma experiences as the same person we were before the trauma experience, but the person we are becomes our new normal.  To effectively impact the world around us we sometimes have to be broken.

God truly wants us to heal from these experiences. If we can all learn to tell our stories instead of burying them deep beneath the surface healing stands a greater chance of occurring. If you have having problems telling your story there are many Christian basesd mental health providers in your area and all you need to do is talk confidentially with your Church's care ministry and they can help you find those resources. You do not have to let your trauma control your life and your life's outcome. With help you can gain control over what the brain tells you is your flight/fight response and with proper help you can gain control over your health and live many years beyond the life expectancy of a traumatized person.

Early Childhood trauma/adversity significantly increases the child's tendancy for heart disease, cancer and other health ailments

Psalms 91:1,2 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

Dr. Nadine Burke Harria discusses the connection between Early childhood trauma and significant health events later in life. What she found from her practice and research on childhood trauma was the high percentage of children that were being referred to her for suspected ADHD, but when she looked into the young person's past and asked the right questions what she discovered was there wasn't enough information to justify the diagnosis of ADHD because these children were really traumatize by early childhood adversity, not the ADHD they thought they had.. This study,http://www.acestudy.org/, was done on a sample consisting  of 70% Caucasion and 70% college students, not students from certain economic zip codes.

What Dr. Burk Harris said made sense.  Left untreated early childhood trauma may lead to significant health problems  in later life. The reason why has to do with the fight or flight response that changes in people who have had early adverse childhood experiences.   She found in her reserarch that there was a significant differerence in the way the pre-frontal lobe processes the stress-response reaction otherwise known as the fight or flight response. She used the illustration of being in a forest and encountering a bear where immediately your brain  sends a signal for a fight or flight response. Then she said that it would be the right response as long as there is a bear present, but what happens when ordinary situations in life produce that response. A lifetime of these responses will go on and cause problems in the metabolic system of that  individual with increase incidence for heart disease, cancer, lung disease, etc.

As a result of her research Dr. Burke-Harris changed the way she treats children who come to her. Rather than do the normal protocol of referring a child to social services she learned to dig deeper into the person's past with the right questions. Out of this research came the development of the  Center for childhood wellness staff with Pediatric physicians skilled at diagnosing trauma in young people.

From my experience and knowledge with trauma I agree with Dr. Harris Burk's findings. We have it all wrong when there are no systems in place when trauma occurs. For the longest time we were told that families need to grieve privately or that we should avoid upsetting the person by not bringing up the name of their love one who died. The sad reality, in our families case, was that when my son returned to his school not one person came over to acknowledge his loss. Looking back I realize that everyone in that environment was grieving and probably needed help themselves.  There were no grief counselors to help him or any of his school friends or staff to help them cope with this sudden loss.

 As I look at our Veterans I see the same thing which is we try to treat the symptoms of their trauma rather than find ways to help them process their pain through story telling. I think everyone realizes that the medications that are prescribed are only a bandaid for a much wider problem. The image of the little dutch boy trying to hold back the leak in the dam wall with his finger in the hole comes to mind.

 We need to stop this ideological thinking that grieving is a private matter left best to the person.  Sudden and traumatic grief profoundly effects everyone whether it is a primary exposure to that incident, or a secondary exposure through their friend.

The solution is to recognize all trauma as a threat to the immune system and to learn to listen and empathize with the person experiencing that trauma.  I have learned in my own research on trauma that the greatest help comes from teaching people to tell their stories, over and over again until they can tell it without eliciting the fight or flight response in the body.

If I would be king for a day I would require all institutions, public and private, to have a relationship with grief counselors and chaplains on standby should a traumatic event either happen during the  day, or away. The message from this study is the sooner we can provide help to kids  who suffer form early adverse trauma the sooner we can help these kids heal so there are not the long lasting health damages caused by the  fight or flight response of the person.

For my family I have to say losing a loved one has taught us the importance of our faith and how our faith taught us to put one foot in front of the other and continue to go to church regardless of how we are feeling from moment to moment. 

When we did we discovered that our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, suffered the worse trauma of all with his persecution, his torture and his slow death on the cross and finally his resurrection. Knowing that we have a living Savior who desires to walk with you through all of your adverse life events gives us the hope that recovery is possible.

Early this morning I saw on a friends caring bridge site that the family made he decision to only provide comfort and care to a love one battle with cancer

17-18 God is love. When we take up permanent residence in a life of love, we live in God and God lives in us. This way, love has the run of the house, becomes at home and mature in us, so that we’re free of worry on Judgment Day—our standing in the world is identical with Christ’s. There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love.

It seems that when someone is suffering those that knew the person  go through gut wrenching emotions  because soon their friend will no longer be among them.

 Life is at times is a cruel twist of fate. First we get to enjoy the uniqueness of the person among us and then circumstances take them away from us and we only have the memories of that person while we are sent cascading into a mix of emotions we know as grief.  

For some who do know or understand those painful emotions may try to numb the pain of those emotions with alcohol and for younger people, drugs. Some may abuse their bodies just to escape the pain of their loss. Some may desire to take time off from work to sleep in hopes of seeing their loved one again. Some may eat too much comfort food that cause additional problems in thier lives. While there may be some who will develop a deeper relationship with the Savior, others may decide that they do not need God because 'if there was a God I wouldn't hurt so much'. I highly recommend this book to help understand pain and suffering:http://www.timothykeller.com/books/walking-with-god-through-pain-and-suffering

As someone who has experienced the raw emotions  of losing a child I can tell you that it wasn't God's plan to see your loved one suffer because we live in a imperfect world where losses do occur.
Jesus Christ, who was with me every step of the way on my journey, reminded me that she was experiencing this beautiful place we know as heaven. We all have to make  the same choice to follow Jesus so that when life ends for any of us we will grab ahold of the hand of our Savior Jesus who will walk us the rest of the way home to heaven.

If you are in the throes of grief I urge you to not be angered toward God. God didn't do anything wrong. Instead, lean on your living Savior, Jesus Christ, and tell him all of your pent up emotions you are feeling from your grief. If you must cry then cry you must.  

God still loves you and continues to have a plan for your life. You may not sense it right now, but in time you will see this plan much like viewing the most beautiful painting in the art gallery.

Hopelessness, faithless, loss of community and suicides in China

Don’t overlook the obvious here, friends. With God, one day is as good as a thousand years, a thousand years as a day. God isn’t late with his promise as some measure lateness. He is restraining himself on account of you, holding back the End because he doesn’t want anyone lost. He’s giving everyone space and time to change.2 Peter 3:9

I woke from a dream this morning. A dream of what people are suffering from when they have no hope, no faith, and no sense of community, and who live in  tight restrictive regimes that believe that God is a crutch and an opiate for the masses.

When people have no sense of identity of who they are and where they came from they lose the very hope for their existence.when they find that money doesn't provide happiness, relationships do not and work does not.

For me, I cannot fathom  life without my life giving God breathed Savior Jesus Christ.  But for many in the land of these restrictive regimes where the mere mentioned of the word Jesus is forbidden less they had the good fortune of running into a Christian tent maker willing to share their love for Jesus with them their lives continue until they can find reason to continue the misery of their life. In those countries where there is no hope suicide becomes an option to escape their misery, their pain of lonliness and their lost identity.

Where there is hopelessness it becomes impossible to understand the context of tragedy or the death of a loved one such as a child.  In China where hopelessness is overwhelming  people have no idea how to handle the incredible painful emotions that result from a death.

When they receive news of such a death they collapse much like the rest of us. The difference is that for those of us who are believers in Jesus Christ and hold  the traditions of worship and honoring the Savior on the Sabbath and having weekly fellowship we have the ability to put such losses into proper context as we 'wrestle' with God who brings us through the pain of our grief.

 For those of us with such a faith we have the means to survive tragedy. Many others without such hope do not. For them lost hope means getting high on drugs and drinking alcohol until they collapse. While those of us with a strong faith conquer our grief like sojourners on a mountain top, others become trapped in a lifestye of addiction because it is the only thing they know to cope with their grief. Opietes become their false religion, their forever 'friend' and their false sense of hope.

My hope for the people in these restrictive countries and for many in our country is that they will have an encounter with God either through another friend who is a believer, or through dreams and revelations that point them to our Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus wants no one to perish and everyone to come to salvation.and He will use every means to reach the loss, the hopeless, and the grief stricten person.

My faith is real. My faith has stood the test  of time since the day I made my decision to follow Jesus Christ, even after tragedy struck. My prayer for others who are filled with hopelessness is that they will come to know the Savior much like I did years ago. After all, Jesus points us to the cross and says to the hopeless that when grief enters your being this will not be your defining moment, but it will be a way for God make his presence truly felt in your life.