***

Well my dear ones,

You may think this is the dumbest thing

you’ve ever heard - and I’m OK with that.

Whenever I walk into one of those stores

that deals in home improvement,

I get a great sense of peace.

Even if I just came in for one or two

specific things, I will gravitate toward

the lumber area, and I will look at the wood

and contemplate the ( Read more... )

***

Well my dear ones,

At Christmas, and Valentine’s Day,

the Hallmark Channel runs marathons;

and my wife records all those movies

so we can watch them together.

They’re always well done;

and it’s a nice way for my wife and I

to spend a batch of time together.

However, if I were to get my idea

of how life is supposed to be

from current movie trends,

I ( Read more... )

***

Well my dear ones,

I haven’t said much lately

because I haven’t had much to say.

Due to current events,

I was going to talk about

my old friend, “the Love Doctor,”

but every time I went to write,

I got the feeling “not now.”

Instead, in the fullness of time,

God laid it on me to talk about

Whitney Houston.

http://theeverencouragingword.blogspot. ( Read more... )

***

Well my dear ones,

Since many people may be off tomorrow,

I figured I would take today to wish everyone

a Happy Easter!

Actually, I saw this cool cartoon

that pretty much says it all;

but since it’s copyright material,

I wrote to The Cartoonist Group

in Washington state for permission to use it.

They were sooooo busy that I didn’t hear

back ( Read more... )

***

Well my dear ones,

Recently, my friend, Jim,

was sermonizing about dogs.

*shrugs*

He’s a pastor;

singers vocalize;

pastors sermonize;

it’s what they do. =>

Anyway, he was sermonizing about dogs,

and how loving and passionate they are

whenever they see their owners,

and how, if you were to go away,

for even a few minutes,

as soon as you came back ( Read more... )

***

Well my dear ones,

I know it’s been a while since I posted,

and that is no accident.

A couple of days after my last post,

my dear friend, Leslie, passed away.

That has taken some time to process;

and while it seems sad,

I echo the sentiments of her husband,

my good friend, Mark, who said:

“While we buried her body,

we know she is in Heaven

( Read more... )

***

Well my dear ones,

It’s Valentine’s Day once again.

How did we come to associate love

with a Catholic saint martyred in the 3rd Century?

Two priests named Valentine were martyred

on February 14th: Valentine of Rome in 269 A.D.

and Valentine of Terni in 273 A.D.

The first was said to have performed marriages

for soldiers (not allowed at that ( Read more... )

***

Well my dear ones,

A pastor I know, who is also

a Christian motivational speaker,

told a story about a woman

who had written to him.

Suffering from severe depression,

she decided one day

that she would commit suicide the next day.

The next day, just as she was getting up,

her little dog wanted to go outside;

in the process of jumping around,

he ( Read more... )

***

Well my dear ones,

Now that the Christmas holidays are over,

we are in the time between New Years

and Valentine’s Day, known as the blue days.

This time of year can be especially hard

on those who have lost someone special.

Recently, I went to visit my parents in CT,

and on the way back, as I took a shuttle

to the airport, I was the only ( Read more... )

Well my dear ones ( Read more... )