STRANGERS

Welcome. I hope my blog is helping you on your faith walk. If you enjoy this, please let your friends know. Although not many people are leaving comments, my daughter, Terri, tells me I have a new friend in Canada. That is what today’s devotional is about -- meeting strangers and learning to know their story.


TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.
Hebrews 13:2


STRANGERS

Do you ever talk to strangers? There are so many interesting stories out there.


Our waiter did an excellent job of serving our lunch, but his story was better than the service. This young man was working in his grandfather's restaurant to make money for tuition. His voice had gained him admittance into Julliard. One day in church, when the congregation was asked to sing out, our children told me, "They don't mean you, Mom." When you have my lack of musical abilities, a young man, who could sing his way into Julliard, definitely leaves an impression.


I cashier at auctions and this gives me an opportunity to meet people from all over the country. When our power goes off for only a short time, I felt inconvenienced, but a couple from Colorado told me about living without electricity. They live higher than the electric lines run and it was fascinating, listening to them as they told about getting their power from a generator and their water from a stream. They had no phone either. How do they survive without telling salespeople they do not need new windows? The spirit of Daniel Boone is still alive.


Strangers come in handy -- especially in a downpour. My mother, sister and I were leaving a restaurant and when we stepped outside, there was an absolute flood in the parking lot. Guess where my car was? Yes, as far away from the door as you could get. My mother informed me it was my car so guess who was going to get wet. Then a lady standing there said, "My husband is coming to pick me up. When he gets here have him take you to your car." You can only imagine how surprised the gentleman looked when this strange lady jumped in his car and said, "Your wife said you would take me to my car over there." He did. Mother -- well she was standing there dry, but her mouth was wide open. She did not believe I would do that.


In today's world, I know we have to be careful, but with every new story I hear, I see the world with new eyes. Not all stories are happy ones, but everyone has a special story to tell and my world is better because I have listened to strangers as I travel my days.


When God sent Jesus to help man, Jesus was a stranger. He came quietly into this world, then told God’s story and Jesus was no longer a stranger.


QUESTIONS OF THE DAY

Have you met a stranger you will never forget? Have you been a stranger to someone? Will they forget you? When you first met Jesus, he was a stranger. Do you know him better now or is he still a stranger?


Please use this as a beginning of your prayer. Finish in your own words, words from you heart.

LET US PRAY

Dear Jesus, When I first met you, I did not know your story. You were a stranger. But as I read and pray, you become real. I understand your story better. Let your story shine through my life. As I meet strangers, let me listen to their stories with an open heart and an open mind. For once I know their story, they are no longer strangers, they are friends. I especially thank you for .………………………………… Amen

A CONSCIENCE

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE


The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
1 Timothy 1:5


A CONSCIENCE

Bill finally planted the garden and this year he added something different. No not some new plant – no new vegetable – no fancy flower. He added an electric fence.

You see, we have a dog and Gretchen has her own definition of fun. Bill puts plant in. Gretchen takes plant out. Oh, what fun Gretchen has! Last summer she helped in the garden by picking tomatoes. The only trouble was she thought it was a hoot to drop the tomatoes in the yard. Well, those red tomatoes did add color to the green grass. Or maybe she was trying to make a salad, because every once in awhile she would add a green pepper to her collection. Although she did try to help pick green beans, they must not have met the taste test. Hopefully, the electric fence will help Gretchen resist temptation.

Wouldn’t it be nice if God would put an electric fence around our temptations? A very visible fence that would shock us when we tried to cross it. Oh, God already thought of that – God gave us a conscience -- an internal electric fence.
Keep your conscience charged.


QUESTIONS OF THE DAY

Do you have an electric fence around your temptations? How can you keep your conscience charged?



Please use this as a beginning of your prayer. Finish in your own words, words from you heart.

LET US PRAY


Dear Lord, The world seems to pull me first this way and then that way. There are so many temptations around me. All I have to do is reach out my hand to you for strength. Please help me learn to love you more than the world. Put your love around me in such a way that I can resist temptation. Help me stay away from ………………………………… Amen

GRAB AHOLD OF FAITH AND HANG ON

Each devotional includes a scripture to read. I encourage you to find other scriptures and to read them and write them down. The scriptures, I have used, are from the New International Version.
You will also find the beginning of a prayer. Praying can be hard sometimes, so I have started a prayer for you, but you are to finish the prayer in your own words. Prayers do not have to be long. They do not have to be eloquent. They just have to honest, from your soul.

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade.”
Mark 4:30-32

GRAB AHOLD OF FAITH AND HANG ON

One thing is for sure, as long as there are grandchildren, there will be a source for Mary’s Moments. When Terri, three and a half month old Timothy and I were at church conference, I had the pleasure of watching Timothy discover his hand. The strangest thing happened though – it disappeared. Then he found it again and he was amazed that it had returned. He would lay there and his hand would come and go, each time staying in his view a little longer. Then one hand grabbed the other and he held on. He was not going to allow that hand to disappear again. It was so much fun just watching him.

Mary’s Moment idea one – let kids be kids. They do not have to be entertained constantly. Let them discover the world – one hand at a time.

Mary’s Moment idea two – Timothy finding his hand is a lot like us finding our faith. In the beginning, it may come and go, but each time faith comes, it stays in view a little longer and our faith grows a little stronger. Then we discover that we can grab onto faith and it will never go away.

So – Grab onto your faith and hang on for a wonderful ride, as you become a “kid” and discover God’s world.

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY

Did your faith begin as a small seed? Smaller than even the mustard seed? Is it growing?

LET US PRAY

Dear Lord, Sometimes my faith can be hard to hold onto. Sometimes, like the disciple Thomas, I want proof. Other times, my faith is rock solid. No questions. My faith is strongest when ………………………………… Amen

GRASS OR A WEED?

I am a new blogger and new at setting this up, so please be patient as I learn ---

Introduction

Mary’s Moments started at a church committee meeting. If you just emitted a groan, I know you are a committee member. At this particular meeting, it was brought to our attention that the weekly church paper could use some articles. The next question was, “Who would be willing to help?”

If you are a true committee member, you know how many hands went up. Did you guess zero? Bingo! Everyone just looked up to the ceiling or doodled on any available paper. Would no one step up?

Someone said, “Okay. Okay. I will write a monthly article. I will write Mary’s Moments. Will that help?” All of a sudden, I realized that the someone who just spoke up was me. Mary’s Moments was born and has been an almost-every-month article, since .

You will find Mary’s Moments sometimes has references to our family. That would be my husband Bill, our son Bill and his children, Kailyn and Nathan, and our daughter Terri, her husband Jon and their children, Matthew, Joshua, Noah and Timothy.

Each devotional includes a scripture to read. I encourage you to find other scriptures and to read them and write them down. The scriptures, I have used, are from the New International Version.

You will also find the beginning of a prayer. Praying can be hard sometimes, so I have started a prayer for you, but you are to finish the prayer in your own words. Prayers do not have to be long. They do not have to be eloquent. They just have to honest, from your soul.

My goal is to give you encouragement in your faith, help for each day and the realization that we all have shared experiences. I also hope to give you a smile and will make you feel better about this world and the people in it.

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TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
James 1:12

GRASS OR WEED?

As I stood looking out at Bill mowing off the weeds, I got to thinking about the dry brown grass and the tall green weeds. Which would I rather be? Grass or weeds? The grass, when we have rain, is so green and soft under foot. Everybody likes grass. It is just right for wiggling toes in or laying a baby on while they nap. Now it is dry. And brown. And does not feel good to bare toes. When the rain comes, it will turn green again. It is just waiting to be nourished.

The weeds seem to be doing just fine without the much-needed rain. They are still growing. They are still green. No one likes weeds, but there they are. In the flowerbed. In the yard. In the garden. In the corn and soybeans. Why do they do so well when everything else seems to suffer in the heat and drought?

Guess the grass and weeds are a lot like people. Some people face hard times like the grass. They do not have a reserve of strength or strong roots to support them. Some people just wait for trouble to blow over. They wait for the “rain” to come to them.

Other people are like the weeds. They are strong in the good times, when they are well fed and watered. BUT – they are also strong when the times are hard. They find an inner strength to stand up to the heat and they have roots to reach down for the water.

Yes, I think I want to be a weed. I want a faith that keeps me strong when times are good. BUT -- more importantly, I want a faith that can stand up to the heat and a faith with roots that will draw up the help I need when my body or soul may be dry.

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY

So, do you want to be grass or a weed? Or are you sometimes grass and sometimes a weed?

LET US PRAY

Dear God, Today I thank you for faith that is solid in the word. Because then I know I can find my way through trials and resist temptations. Continue to water and feed my soul. You strengthen my faith every time I ………………………………… Amen