Sparky

His name is Sparky. I want to say he’s a dog. But to say he is just a dog is like saying that the Super Bowl is just a football game.

If you know me well you know that I am not the biggest fan of pets. I am not cruel or anything…just never been one to go overboard too much when it comes to domesticated animals.

But if you do know me well, you get a pet in front of me who is the coolest pet, the “best friend” that people sometimes call their pets and I am hooked. That is Sparky.

He could be the most annoying animal…whiney, barking, (my nickname for him is “barky”), never completely, fully house trained…yeah he could be very annoying to me. And I will confess, at times if he were mine, I might have considered foster care for the amount of care he needed. He is like a little child…even at 15+ yrs. old, (my daughter got him from a shelter when he was about one year old), this past Christmas he acted a like a little baby. In our home for less than a few hours…he made his mark on our carpet. But during his visit this past Christmas, for some reason, he would come and rest his head on my feet while I sat and watched television. Not once but several times throughout their visit this happened. I did not understand how much I will miss that now.

Reminds me of this past summer. Taking Jakob to spend some time with his sister, we stayed at the Embassy Suites in Birmingham, AL. They allowed dogs. Around 1:00 a.m. he is scratching at the door of our room telling someone he wanted to go potty. I was elected because I was the one who heard him and was awake. I leashed him up and left our room on the fifth floor. We left the elevator and if you are familiar with Embassy Suites they have immaculate garden areas, running streams through the lobby. Well Spark somehow thought he was outside and got out of the grip of his leash and started to make his mark in the garden area. I dragged him literally from the space spewing gravel, dirt, and bark all over the lobby trying to get him outside. I was more than a little upset. By the time we got outside he hardly had anything left. He just looked up at me as if to say, “Okay lets go back to the room and to bed.”

My daughter called us today to tell us that Sparky is sick. The Vet says it seems like congestive heart failure and they are trying to decide the next course of action. (While writing this late at night my daughter called us to talk about what was happening, how to move forward, what to say to our two little grandchildren).

I am sad. I a non-pet person find my heart overwhelmed not just for my daughter and her family or other members of my family who know and love and who Sparky has been a part of their life. I am sad because I care for him. He has broken through into my heart and I pray now that God will help Sparky and give wisdom to all those in deciding his care.

The author of Marley and Me writes:

“A dog has no use for fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes. Status symbol means nothing to him. A waterlogged stick will do just fine. A dog judges others not by their color or creed or class but by who they are inside. A dog doesn't care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his. It was really quite simple, and yet we humans, so much wiser and more sophisticated, have always had trouble figuring out what really counts and what does not.”

“Such short little lives our pets have to spend with us, and they spend most of it waiting for us to come home each day. It is amazing how much love and laughter they bring into our lives and even how much closer we become with each other because of them.”

And his final words to Marley:

“You remember how we were always saying what a pain you are-that you're the world's worst dog? Don't believe it. Don't believe any of it for a minute. 'Cause you know we couldn't find a better dog. You know what made you such a great dog-is you loved us every day, no matter what. That's an amazing thing. You know how much we love you? We love you so much. I love you more than anything. I don't know exactly where we go from here...but I want you to remember you're a great dog, Marley. You're a great dog.”

Sparky…I love you and you are a GREAT dog!

Donald R. Goodman

I just received a phone call from my Mom, telling me that my sister's father in law just passed away. Donald R. Goodman. Born with a strong work ethic, Don Sr., as I called him, was a man of character and care. Justice too marked his life, always wanting to see people treated fairly and honestly.
I met him after coming home from the Philippines as a missionary. I started working at the family roofing business, Ohrt & Goodman. Started in 1875, Ohrt & Goodman had a great reputation in the Western NY area in service and quality. Don Sr. showed that in everything he did. If you were a new customer, He treated you well and fairly. If you were an old customer you thought you were royalty.

After a couple of months on roofs, I transferred into the office as Ohrt & Goodman's "secretary", handling a lot of the office responsibilities and of course making sure Don Sr. was always served well and happy. Every morning I brought him his paper and a buttered alligator roll. He loved my coffee, (this is where I started to drink real coffee, real strong...).

He would review estimates that needed doing always taking the past customers he knew and because of his age, the single story roofs. One story sticks out is when Don Sr. had a call to do a garage roof for an old friend. His age again was showing as he forgot the address of the residence. He called me and gave me the name asking me to look up the address, (this is before GPS and Google Maps), I turned to the phone book found the name, gave him the address.

He then measured the roof, ordered the shingles for the next day and put one of our crews on it for the next day.

I am sitting in the office and get a call from someone who asked why we were putting a new roof on his garage...turned out their was a Sr. and a Jr. with the same last name living not too far from each other...I gave Don Sr. the Jr.s address.

We fixed the problem and I was upset and worried about my job...I never heard anything form Don Sr. though he might have had cause to get mad.

He was a member of the Lion's club and so part of my job was to help with Lion's club projects too. Charitable events, give aways and fund raising things..I think my 12 years in charitable work was sparked in part by Don Sr.s work and him involving me.

He loved his family so much. My sister was treated like his own daughter and his grand kids? They were the apple of his eye.

In Genesis 25:8, we read, "Then Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people"

Full of years speaks of the fullness of one's life. How full each day, week, month, and year was in purpose and fulfillment. That is how I view Don Sr.

I am sad and yet celebrate Donald R. Goodman's life. I will miss Don Sr. very much and my prayers go out to the entire family!

A Scoundrel experiencing a need for God.....

I was praying for my family and friends in need today....and when I got to Jakob I experienced a refreshing reminder of his name sake, Jacob, son of Isaac.
My son is not a scoundrel..but Jacob son of Isaac was such a man. Conniving, tricking, stealing, lying, cheating...all these to try and receive some type of blessing from God.
When in the middle of the night in the midst of fear, self-inflicted trouble and pain, he wrestled with the Angel of the Lord and said, "I will not stop, I will not let go until I know I am blessed..."
That very night he was changed, physically, emotionally and most importantly spiritually. He went from Jacob, meaning scoundrel and cheat, to Israel, a "Prince with God"
In our most fearful and terrible times of life we wrestle with life not realizing that we are wrestling with God! We wrestle and we fight and we try to hold on and survive, when all the while we are in the presence of God in our struggle and God is wanting us to verbalize what we really need and want, a blessing from Him, a sense of His presence in the midst of the battle...and He wants to change not our circumstances but us. He wants us to become princes and princesses, His children who do not wrestle and fight, but who with faith can come to Him and tell Him how we feel, what we want, and show we know it is He who will provide all that is necessary for our life.
Let us let down our defenses, our restrictions, the walls that we think keep out the "stuff" of life that hurts and with arms wide open embrace the One who loves us, wants to help us, and wants more than anything for us to trust Him to do the work necessary to transform and change us from scoundrels to royalty!

I have never been much of a pet person...

But then we all are different. And once in a while there are stories of people who love pets and I am inspried!

Marley and Me...just watched...again...for the umpteenth time, (when I get inspired and a movie moves my spirit and soul, I like to watch it a lot....) and looked up the story of the real life Marley and his owner John Grogan. Found these great quotes...almost makes me want to go out and get a dog..(I said almost...).

"A person can learn a lot from a dog, even a loopy one like ours. Marley taught me about living each day with unbridled exuberance and joy, about seizing the moment and following your heart. He taught me to appreciate the simple things-a walk in the woods, a fresh snowfall, a nap in a shaft of winter sunlight. And as he grew old and achy, he taught me about optimism in the face of adversity. Mostly, he taught me about friendship and selflessness and, above all else, unwavering loyalty."

"A dog has no use for fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes. Status symbol means nothing to him. A waterlogged stick will do just fine. A dog judges others not by their color or creed or class but by who they are inside. A dog doesn't care if you are rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his. It was really quite simple, and yet we humans, so much wiser and more sophisticated, have always had trouble figuring out what really counts and what does not. As I wrote that farewell column to Marley, I realized it was all right there in front of us, if only we opened our eyes. Sometimes it took a dog with bad breath, worse manners, and pure intentions to help us see."

". . . owning a dog always ended with this sadness because dogs just don't live as long as people do."

"It's just the most amazing thing to love a dog, isn't it? It makes our relationships with people seem as boring as a bowl of oatmeal."

"Dogs are great. Bad dogs, if you can really call them that, are perhaps the greatest of them all."

"I had never thought of Marley as any kind of model, I was aware that maybe he held the secret for a good life. Never slow down, never look back, live each day w/ adolescent verve and spunk and curiosity and playfulness."

"In a dog's life, some plaster would fall, some cushions would open, some rugs would shred. Like any relationship, this one had its costs. They were costs we came to accept and balance against the joy and amusement and protection and companionship he gave us."

"Such short little lives our pets have to spend with us, and they spend most of it waiting for us to come home each day. It is amazing how much love and laughter they bring into our lives and even how much closer we become with each other because of them"

And their final moments together John Grogan and Marley....
"Then I dropped my forehead against his and sat there for a long time, as if I could telegraph a message through our two skulls, from my brain to his. I wanted to make him understand some things.
You know all that stuff we’ve always said about you?” I whispered. “What a total pain you are? Don’t believe it. Don’t believe it for a minute, Marley.” He needed to know that, and something more, too. There was something I had never told him, that no one ever had. I wanted him to hear it before he went. "Marley,” I said. “You are a great dog."

John Grogan

Joy comes through facebook....

When I first registered for facebook I was met with cruelty by young people saying an old guy like me should not be on such a youthful networking site.

I actually erased my first posting because of it but then gave thought to the incredible tool it could be for me in my heart's desire to engage with people, minister where I could and communicate my heart of God, His love, His care, His provision...so I re-registered.

I have some friends who were missionaries with us in the Philippines. Incredibly gifted couple they took missions seriously and the work they did on the island of Mindanao always made me envious that I could not do what they did, even join them in the efforts, (mainly because I was not the same caliber of missionary at the time..).

Fastforward to the present the facebook. Bryan and Diane popped up on a suggested friends list and as funny as it seemed because I have always considered them friends from the past, I "friended" them and we have connected once again.

The other day a posting by both of them shared the news of their daughter Joy: "PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR DAUGHTER JOY - this morning, a few hours before Diane was to fly to Uganda, we received a phone call from Nashville. Our daughter Joy had an aneurysm and may have brain surgery today. It's very serious and could be fatal or seriously debilitating. Diane and I are flying to Nashville at 10:30 this morning."

I can remember Joy as a young girl with curly hair, smart as a whip and very mature for her age. As I read this I added the entire family to my prayer list and posted a small post concerning our prayers. As I prayed I linked Bryan and Diane's facebook to my alert page so when they post I would get a hit to keep me updated.

Here are the next few posts from Bryan:

"Surgery has finally been scheduled for today (Sunday) 11:00 am (Nashville time), and it can only take place if they feel that the bleeding has slowed and the brain is more stable. If the surgery is successful, it would be at least ten more days before she would be out of the woods and begin the long road of rehabilitation. Joy's 3 daughters will move in with us and we pray that before their mommy will join them."

"....The surgery today was successful - praise God. Now, prayer is needed for 2 weeks of intensive care to be sure that the platinum coils inserted in the brain arteries fully attach and the arteries heal. The doctor said this critical period is as serious as the surgery. Thanks so much!"

"Please pray for our Joy to remain and for God to use this to do wonderful things in her life and in the lives of many. We are tired and scared, but trusting God. Due to her life situation, her health insurance had been cancelled and there are many difficult and complex factors about this situation besides her fight for life. Thank you so much for your love and prayers!"

"...Joy just came out of surgery and the doctor said it was successful. Praise God! He also said that the next 10-14 days are critical as that's the period when the aneurysm can rupture and be fatal. Therefore, she must be in intensive care for the next two weeks. If you could share the great news and also the need for two more weeks of prayer, that would be such a blessing. After 14 days, if all is well, she can move in with us and we will have to take care of her and her 3 girls for probably six months of recovery. They will do periodic CT scans and checkups for 2 years to be sure there is no recurrence. We are trusting God for the next two weeks and beyond and are believing that all of this will impact life for Joy and all of us in positive ways. "

"Our dear friends and family, Joy's surgery was a success and the doctor is very positive about the results. He said that she actually had a small aneurysm 3 weeks ago and should have died, but it remained a slow leak until it fully burst yesterday. God protected her even when we didn't know that her life was in danger. We are so grateful!"

"Yesterday, the doctor explained that Joy had both an aneurysm and a stroke. It's a miracle that she is alive. He also said that he never had a surgery go so smoothly and successful in his career, like Joy's did. She is taking, and told the doctor that it's because so many people are praying for her. Please keep praying, as she is still in critical condition and weak and in much pain. We are so grateful for you all!"

"The blood that's spread throughout Joy's brain from the aneurysm and stroke is causing tremendous head pain, so they increased her morphine. She had most of her hair cut off today. Tonight, Joy couldn't move her head, lift her arm or open her eyes. She is so weak and in such pain. Please increase the prayers. It's killing us to see her like this, but I am entrusting her to God who loves her more than I ever could."

"Diane spent the night with Joy, Laura the morning shift, and I'm on day duty. After vomiting again & more pain in the morning, Joy's CT scan revealed that some of the blood has dissipated. She opened her eyes, moved her arm & talked a little this afternoon -hooray! Keep up the prayers & loving thoughts & notes! Thanks so much for all that you all are doing and for the meals on wheels! We feel so blessed by you all!"

"Diane spent the night with Joy & had 2 hours sleep. Please pray for her. She gave Joy a sponge bath & fed her jello. Joy felt a little stronger & talked a bit. Your prayers for Joy and encouraging thoughts and words to her are working! Today is Cara, her oldest daughter's 10th birthday, and she will look in the window to... see her mom. Please pray for the 3 daughters - Cara, Adia & Sarayah, & for all our strength."

And his last posting late last night:

"The wonderful hospital actually allowed us to take Cara, Adia and Sarayah in to see Joy for a few short minutes and Joy was able to tell Cara again about the day she was born and how much that she loves her! Then, we celebrated with cupcakes and balloons outside Joy's hospital window. It will be a birthday to remember for sure!"

As I reread these postings and pray I marvel how we can see God using facebook not only to reconnect me with some old friends, but to see God use it to inspire me to pray for these friends during this time. How many more people do we all know out there who could use this for not just fun and networking, but for serious fellowship and prayer...I continue to pray for the Thomas family and ask that you pray for them too. I ask that all of us look at the world around us and the advancement in technology as tools for the ever expanding Kingdom of God! Lastly I thank God for bringing me Joy through facebook!

Joy, if you ever read this, thank you for allowing me the privilege of hearing about you once again and praying for you which in turn is blessing me beyond measure!

Everyday has come again...

The house is still dark this early morning three days after Christmas. My wife and I are sleeping on the floor of our living room with my son Jakob and our two year old granddaughter. The rest of the rooms of our house are filled. Filled with family here for the Christmas holiday. I cannot get back to sleep, so I try to quietly arise from the mattress on the floor and sneak into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee. I move to another room for a moment and there I see my oldest son. He has let out the visiting dog, (yes we have our family and a couple of their pets with us too).
I look around to see where I can sit quietly and drink my coffee and see that the sun is trying to make its way to the eastern horizon. So I slip out onto the back porch and look at the thermometer and though it says it is 20 degrees, I am okay with my thick bathrobe and cup of coffee.
As I look to the east I see the slight glowing of the eventual sunrise and notice cars and truck still with lights on pulling into the Chesapeake parking lot, (thank you again Chesapeake employees for your wonderful generosity to the Waynoka Food Pantry)!. It’s Monday. The Monday after Christmas and people are getting back to their everyday. The things we do everyday have come back and life and work resumes to their normal patterns just like a month or two before we entered the Christmas season. Gone are the expectations of Christmas coming. Memories have been made from yet another Christmas day. Everyday has returned and I sit and wonder what this Christmas brought to us all and how it will affect our everyday.
Sure the lights and trees and decorations are still visible, but their meaning and beauty has diminished a little because Christmas has passed. We sit and we think about the trimmings of Christmas and how soon it will be that we must start removing the decorations, packing them away till next year, (As of today, December 31, there are 359 days left till Christmascomes again)!
How will we let this past Christmas affect us? How will we reflect upon yet another celebration of the coming of Christ? How will we live a little differently because we know the Christ child has come, and the King of Kings has lived, and the Lord of the universe has died for us so that we can become the children of God?
Let us resolve ourselves to making sure that this past Christmas and Christmases to come make us more committed to God and Christ; to love others as ourselves, to serve, to care to love. May we never forget the “Real Reason for the Season” because you see we are the reason for the season, Christ coming to be our Savior! After all if we did not need a Savior Christ might not have come at all! Let us not pack away Christ with the Christmas décor and keep Him present in our hearts and lives always!

The Bend in the Road

As I at my desk today I was thinking of some folk who are going through some hard times.
As I prayed for them I thought of an old poem by Helen Stenier Rice, "The Ambassador of Sunshine" who wrote thousands of peoms and lent them to greeting cards for more than 65 years. Her poems still grace greeting cards today...

"The Bend in the Road"

When we feel we have nothing left to give
And we are sure that the “song has ended”–
When our day seems over and the shadows fall
And the darkness of night has descended.

Where can we go to find the strength
To valiantly keep on trying,
Where can we find the hand that will dry
The tears that the heart is crying–

There’s but one place to go and that is to God
And, dropping all pretense and pride,
We can pour out our problems without restraint
And gain strength with Him at our side–

And together we stand at life’s crossroads
And view what we think is the end,
But God has a much bigger vision
And He tells us it’s only a bend–

For the road goes on and is smoother,
And the “pause in the song” is a “rest”,
And the part that’s unsung and unfinished
Is the sweetest and richest and best–

So rest and relax and grow stronger,
Let go and let God share your load,
Your work is not finished or ended,
You’ve just come to “a bend in the road”.

Helen Steiner Rice