GRANDMA AND THE OLD CLOCK

More memories from my school days at Gift are still rattling around in my head. This time we go back to Kindergarten. The first grade was not in the same building as the second through eighth-grade classes, and the Kindergarten class wasn’t either. In fact, it wasn’t even in the same lot. There was the School, a big, brick, and concrete building. The first grade was in a mobile home that had been converted into a classroom. It was located behind the school. The Kindergarten class was in a house on the other side of the playground, and across a field with some trees.

I remember playing outside in the sandbox. It was fun, but I liked exploring more than digging around in a sandbox that a cat had used for a litter box. I went all over the yard, as far as I was allowed to go. One day I found an old alarm clock in the weeds. I was always intrigued by things like that; things I could take apart to see how they worked.

I went and showed it to one of my teachers, and she said I could have it, so I took it home. When I got there that evening and started playing with it, my grandmother asked me where I got it. I told her, but she didn’t believe me. I don’t remember telling a lie until a few years later in life, but maybe I did. Whatever the reason, she told me to take it back, and tell the teacher I had stolen it. 

I took it back the next day and tried to give it to the teacher. I told her I couldn’t keep it, and I told her what my grandmother had said. My teacher came to see my grandmother at our house and straightened it all out. My grandmother apologized to me, and I got to keep the clock. 

My wife and I have raised three kids of our own now, and I think I understand a little of what my grandmother went through raising me and two of my sisters. It’s not easy. I remember several times when I thought my kids had lied, but I found out I was wrong. All I could do was say “I’m sorry” and move on. I hope they all understand that no parent is perfect, and if they haven’t already, I hope they’ll forgive me for the times I was wrong while trying to prepare them for adulthood. If they don’t understand now, they will as they raise their own children. I pray they will always trust God, and allow him to guide them in this very important responsibility.

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A MAN ON THE EDGE

It’s one fifteen in the morning. Chris is startled from sleep by a blood-chilling scream. By the time he gathers his senses, he realizes the scream came from his own mouth. The dream again. The same dream, over and over, for years. A better description would be a nightmare. This one is not as bad as some of the others he has, almost nightly, but this one keeps coming back. The sweat burns his eyes as he tries to catch his breath, and he wonders, “What’s going on with me?” He won’t get much sleep for the rest of the morning. Six a.m. will come, and he will be so tired he won’t be able to function properly all day.

That’s the way it’s been for several years now. The meaning of many of his nightmares is perfectly clear to Chris, but he doesn’t have a clue about this one. Maybe that’s why it haunts him. Maybe he needs to understand. He just doesn’t know. What he does know is that it’s not normal. He knows that everybody doesn’t dream the same dream over and over, again and again, year after year. He wishes to be normal. He wishes he could get some sleep.

The lack of sleep, and the pressures of work, along with a thousand other problems, have led to anxiety and depression, which have given rise to other problems, both physical and emotional. All this is having a negative effect on his relationships with his family and friends, and it’s affecting his performance at his job, as well.

Now, he lies in bed, tossing and turning, trying desperately to get back to sleep. His mind just won’t rest. It won’t even slow down. One thought jumps to another, and another, and then another until they all run together. Finally, after hours of restlessness, Chris finally falls asleep. Less than an hour later his alarm goes off. He hits the snooze to rest a few more minutes. By the time he gets awake enough to move, he realizes he has overslept.

Running late again, he fights his way through the thick rush of morning traffic. Finally, he makes it to work. The morning wears on slowly, and he is bombarded with paperwork. He has several moments where he almost walks out, never to return, but he perseveres, and lunchtime finally arrives. Exhausted from lack of sleep, and drained from the morning’s toil, the last thing on his mind is food. All he can think about is closing his eyes and never opening them again. He goes to his car, sets the alarm on his watch for one hour, and quickly falls asleep.

An hour passes, and when the alarm on Chris’ watch startles him awake, he feels as though he had only just closed his eyes a minute ago. He drags himself out of his car and back to work for two more terribly long, agonizing hours. Quitting time finally arrives, bringing with it a breath of fresh air, and a sigh of relief. Still, Chris feels overwhelmed and drained of all his energy, so he drags himself to his car, and heads home for the day.

As he drives home, he thinks to himself, “There’s gotta be more to life than this. If not, why even go on living?” Just then, he looks up at the sky, and says out loud, “Why don’t you help me, God?” He spends the rest of the ride home talking to Jesus and hoping for some kind of answer, some way to feel better, some peace, some closure. “It has to get better,” he says, “It has to.”

Does that sound familiar in any way? It’s sad that, so often, we have to reach our lowest point before we call on God for help. He wants to be our friend and constant companion in all situations. In the good times as well as the bad. Many times a situation would have been resolved long before it escalated into something unbearable if we would only stay in constant communication with God, as Jesus did when he was on earth.

In today’s world, a close relationship with Jesus is what we all need to stay on the right track. We are being attacked on every side. We need his help to remain strong in the face of opposition. Christian persecution may not have affected you yet, but Christians around the world are being persecuted and killed every day. None of us can stand for God in the face of such evil acts unless we spend time, daily, in his presence.

Trust him (Psalm 9:10). Obey him (Luke 11:28). Pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Give him all your burdens (1 Peter 5:7), and he will give you strength to face anything, and still be able to stand up for him and his truth. ---

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© 2012 Teddy Lynn – All Rights Reserved

Adapted for the book “Inspiration For The Journey” by Teddy Lynn © 2012-2016 All Rights Reserved

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BILLY AND HIS STRANGE PET

Billy was a sad little boy. He was only eight years old but, a lot of bad things had already happened to him. His parents had given him away when he was only three. He was abused in foster care and was bullied and picked on in school. He was full of anger, fear, and confusion, but even with all that going on inside him, he was still able to show love.

He really loved animals. He especially loved those he had been able to keep as his own. Dogs, cats, rabbits, opossums, and even some mice. He loved his pets so much that he didn’t think of them as possessions, but as friends. But it seemed like every pet Billy ever loved had died, or was somehow taken away from him.

One of his cats was killed by a car. Another cat just came up missing. One of his dogs died from a terrible disease. He had a little puppy named Sparky that he loved so, so much. But one morning, when he went out to play with his little friend, he found he had died, too. Billy’s heart was broken again. Then there was his dog Dee Cee. Billy loved him as much as he had loved Sparky. He was always waiting for Billy when he would get home from school in the afternoon. He would run to meet Billy and jump into his arms and lick his face. Then they would run and play until they were both exhausted. One day when he came home from school, Dee Cee wasn’t there to meet him. He searched for him for what seemed like forever. Then, day turned to night, and days turned to weeks. He never saw his best friend again. His heart was broken once more.

He had been hurt so many times. Not only by losing his pets he had loved so much, but also by the people in his life. He decided that he had had enough. He didn’t want to be hurt again. He became cold and distant. For a while, he didn’t even want a pet, but he was so lonely. Eventually, he decided to give it another try. He had to choose this pet wisely, so he thought and thought about it for a long time. What kind of pet would be the best for him? He thought and thought some more.

Then he saw it. It had been there all the time, right in front of him. He had played with it before and he knew that it would be the perfect pet for him. It wasn’t like any of the pets he had before. It had a long neck and a long body. Its head was wide and it had a big mouth. It wasn’t at all pretty, but he had found the perfect pet. A pet shovel. Billy thought to himself, “the beauty of having a pet shovel is that you don’t have to worry about it dying and leaving you alone.” When you want to play, it will always be there and it won’t get tired and lay down, or run off and leave you when another shovel comes around. It will never get angry and yell at you, or abandon you, or abuse you in any way. No sir. This pet would never break his heart. How could it?

Billy loved his pet shovel and took good care of it and carried it everywhere he went. He washed it and cleaned it. He petted it and talked to it, and he even fed it. Now, what does a pet shovel eat? Dirt, of course. Billy spared no expense. He went straight to the flower garden. “Only the best dirt for you”, he told his new best friend. “Only the best.”

There are many people in this world like Billy. People who have had a bad life and feel they have nowhere to turn, and no one to turn to without finding more pain. But thankfully, when he was older, Billy met someone he could trust. Someone who would love him unconditionally and would always be there for him and would never let him down. No, I’m not talking about his pet shovel. I’m talking about Jesus.

Jesus is always there for us. No matter where we are, where we’ve been, or what we’ve done, Jesus loves us and will never leave us. He loves us so much that he came down to earth from heaven and died to redeem us from the curse of sin. He bought us back with his blood. Not so he could own us, or boss us around, but so we could live forever with him as friends.

There will always be pain and disappointments in this life. People we know and love may say or do things that hurt us. Our pets and family members may die or leave us, but, no matter how bad things get in life, no matter how bad or worthless we may feel, Jesus is always there to help us make it through it. He promises us he will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). He wants to be your friend. All you have to do is accept his friend request. He’s waiting for you right now.

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HOW CAN YOU TRUST GOD?

In this world of selfishness, it’s growing more and more difficult to trust others. People lie, cheat, steal, kill and do all kinds of immoral deeds just to satisfy their own lustful desires, without any concern for the feelings of others. Is it any wonder that people don’t trust God? Unless a person knows him pretty well, why would they trust him? That’s Satan’s plan. He doesn’t have to get us to rebel against God or do all those despicable things that so many others are doing. If he can weaken our trust in God, he knows that eventually, we’ll turn away from God. That’s more likely than you may think. I grew up in church. I’ve seen it happen to many people. It happened to me. We have to trust God. We MUST trust him.

Proverbs 3:5 says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.”

Psalm 62:8 says, “Trust in him at all times, you people, pour out your heart before him. God is a refuge for us.”

How do we put our trust in God? Well, in the beginning, it’s easier said than done. Anyone who has ever been in a relationship of any kind knows that trust is usually not something that is just automatically there. Trust has to be earned. You don’t trust someone that you don’t know; At least not completely. God wants us to have complete and total trust in him.

How do we do that? We have to develop a close personal relationship with God. He will earn your trust as the relationship grows, and soon, you will be able to trust Him completely. Even when things aren’t going well. Now comes another question. How do we get to know God and build that relationship? The answer is simple. Through prayer, Bible reading, and Bible study.

Psalm 73:28 says, “But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord God, so I may declare all your works.

As you read and study God’s word, you’ll get to know him by reading about him, and he will speak to you through his word. You’ll read about how he created everything, and how much he loves his creation, including you. You’ll read about many of his followers and their relationships with him, and you’ll learn more about how you can have a great relationship with him.

When you read about what he has done for others, and see what he does in your life, then you’ll begin to understand why so many others love him and trust him with their lives. As you study his book and get to know him, you’ll begin to see that you CAN trust him, but you have to get to know him, so start reading the bible today. It’s a great book, and I highly recommend it.

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