Category: Prayer & Praise

In part 2 of “Your Rod and Staff, They Comfort Me” we are talking about the staff – what is it and what does it represent in our relationship with the Good Shepherd.

More than any other piece of equipment, the Staff identifies the Shepherd as a Shepherd.  No one in any other profession carries a staff.  It is used uniquely in the care and management of sheep and will not do for the care of horses, cattle, dogs, or any other animal.  It is designed, shaped and adapted especially to the needs of sheep and is used only for their benefit.

 *The staff is essentially a symbol of the concern and compassion that a shepherd has for his charges.  No other single word can better describe its function on behalf of the flock than that it is for their comfort.  Whereas the rod conveys the concept of authority, of power, of discipline, of defense against danger, the word “staff” speaks of all that is longsuffering and kind.

 As the rod of God is emblematic of the Word of God, the Staff of God is symbolic of the Spirit of God.  In Christ’s dealings with us as individuals there is the essence of the sweetness, the comfort and consolation, the gentle correction brought about by the work of His gracious Spirit.

 3 Areas of Sheep Management that the Staff plays a most significant role

1.  Drawing sheep together into intimate relationship.  The shepherd will use his staff to gently lift a newborn lamb and bring it to its mother if they become separated.  He does this because he does not wish to have the ewe reject her offspring if it bears the odor of his hands upon it.
2. 2.The Staff is used by the shepherd to reach out and catch individual sheep, young or old, and draw them close to himself for intimate examination.  The staff is very useful this way for the shy and timid sheep that normally tend to keep at a distance from the shepherd.
3. The staff is also used for guiding sheep gently into a new path or through some gate or along dangerous, difficult routes.  He does not use it actually to beat the beast.  Rather, the tip of the long slender stick is laid gently against the animal’s side, and the pressure applied guides the sheep in the way the owner wants it to go.  Thus the sheep is reassured of its proper path.

 Interesting sideline – a shepherd will actually hold his staff against the side of some sheep that is a special pet or favorite, simple so that they are “in touch”.  They will walk along this way almost as though it were “hand-in-hand.”  The sheep obviously enjoys this special attention from the shepherd and revels in the close, personal, intimate contact between them.  To be treated in this special way by the shepherd is to know comfort in a deep dimension.

 In our walk with God we are told explicitly by Christ Himself that it would be His Spirit who would be sent to guide us and to lead us into all truth – John 16:13.  This same gracious Spirit takes the truth of God, the Word of God, and makes it plain to our hearts and minds and spiritual understanding.  It is He who gently, tenderly, but persistently says to us, “This is the way-walk in it.”  And as we comply and cooperate with His gentle promptings, as sense of safety, comfort, and well-being envelops us.  It is He, too, who comes quietly but emphatically to make the life of Christ, my Shepherd, real and personal and intimate to me.  Through Him I am “in touch” with Christ.  There steals over me the keen awareness that I am His and He is mine.  The gracious Spirit continually brings home to me the acute consciousness that I am God’s child and He is my Father.  In all of this there is enormous comfort and a sublime sense of “oneness”, of “belonging,” of “being in His care,” and hence the object of His special affection. 

Thank you, Jesus for taking really good care of us!

Dana

Hey Friends of NLD,

I am planing on getting back to the 23rd Psalm series this week….I promise!  But I have just a quick moment to share with you some things that I am reading and have just finished reading and I would highly recommend these books!

The first is Captivating by John & Stasi Eldredge.  It was fantastic and very much what I needed.  A little excerpt off the back cover says this, “Your heart matters more than anything else in all creation.  The desires you had as a little girl and the longings you still feel as a woman-they are telling you of the life God created you to live.  He offers to come now as the Hero of your story, to rescue your heart and release you to live as a fully alive and feminine woman.  A woman who is truly captivating.”

The second is So Long Insecurity, you’ve been a bad friend to us by Beth Moore.  I am still reading this and I am in chapter 12.  It is a great read as well.  Beth so identifies with the heart of a woman and knows our language.  She communicates tough truths in a way that we can hear and receive them.  Let me share some thoughts from the back cover. 

“You’re considering the book because you saw the word insecurity…and all your buried insecurities surfaced.  You know you’re insecure.  So either you rushed to snatch the book up, not caring who saw, or you casually strolled over, hoping no one would see you as you slyly picked it up.  You know you need help.  (You’re not alone). 

Maybe you’re ok for the most part…but there are those insecurities you could work on.  THings could be better.  You’re wondering, Can I really say, “So long” to my insecurities? (Yes, you can.) 

Or maybe you’re just curious.  You’re fine.  You wonder what on earth there is for so many women to be insecure about.  And has Beth Moore, of all people, struggled with insecurity?  (Yes, she has.)

Whoever you are, this book is for you, because you have it in you to be secure”.

So….if you are looking for some good reading material check these out!  Are you on spring break this week??  Share with us what your family is doing as we are stuck here in the office peering out the window and the wonderful sunshine and warmth!

See you back in the 23rd Psalm in the next post!!

Dana

Well, let me get back to our entry’s on the 23rd Psalm.  We are dealing with the phrase, “He Restores My Soul”.  Now even though this Psalm is coming from one sheep in the Good Shepherd’s care it is important to realize that one can still become in need of restoration. 

David, the author of the 23rd Psalm knew this all to well.  He knew he was much-loved of God but he also knew what it meant to be cast down and dejected.  He had tasted defeat in his life and felt the frustration of having fallen under temptation.  David was acquainted with the bitterness of feeling hopeless and without strength in himself.  In Psalm 42:11 he cries out, “Why are you downcast, O my soul?  Why so disturbed within me?  Put your hope in God…”

The parallel to this in caring for sheep is going to blow your mind.  I had no idea the depth or magnitude that this parallel gives to us as Christians.  Only those intimately acquainted with sheep and their habits could see and understand the significance of a “cast” sheep or a “cast down” sheep. 

First of all, the term cast is an old English shepherd’s term for a sheep that has turned over on its back and cannot get up again by itself.  This is an awful site with the sheep’s back to the ground and feet dangling in the air frantically struggling to stand up but having no success.  Sometimes it will bleat a little for help, but generally it lies there thrashing about in frightened frustration.

If the shepherd does not arrive on the scene within a reasonably short time, the sheep will die.  This is but another reason why it is so essential for a careful sheepman to look over his flock every day, counting them to see that all are able to be up and on their feet.  The other problem that arises for a cast sheep is that if the shepherd does not arrive and help the sheep soon predators could hear and find the cast sheep.  Buzzards, vultures, dogs, coyotes, and cougars all know that a cast sheep is easy prey and death of not far off.  Needless to say, the sheep would be an easy meal for the predator.  All of this makes the problem of a cast sheep very, very serious for the shepherd. 

One may wonder how a sheep becomes cast.  A heavy, fat, or long-fleeced sheep will lie down comfortable in some little hollow or depression in the ground.  It may roll on its side slightly to stretch out or relax.  Suddenly the center of gravity in the body shifts so that it turns on its back far enough that the feet no longer touch the ground.  It may feel a sense of panic and start to paw frantically.  Frequently this only makes things worse.  It rolls over even further.  Now it is quite impossible for it to regain its feet.

As it lies there struggling, gases begin to build up in the rumen.  As these expand they tend to retard and cut off blood circulation to extremities of the body, especially the legs.  If the weather is very hot and sunny, a cast sheep can die in a few hours.  If it is cool, cloudy and/or rainy, it may survive in this position for several days.

Another major tragedy in this situation is that if the cast sheep is a ewe with lambs it is a multiple loss to the owner.  If the lambs are unborn, they perish with her and if they are young and suckling, they become orphans.  So you can understand why a shepherd is always alert and aware of the needs of his sheep.  This is also where the “counting” of the sheep comes in to play.  There is much pageantry and drama in this for the shepherd and you may have sensed that in reading the magnificent story of the ninety-nine sheep with one astray.  There is the shepherd’s deep concern, his agonizing search, his longing to find the missing one, and his delight in restoring it not only to its feet but also to the flock as well as to himself.

Obviously when we examine the conduct of Jesus Christ we see Him coping with human need.  We find Him again and again as the Good Shepherd picking up cast sheep.  The tenderness, the love, the patience that He used to restore Peter’s soul after the terrible tragedy of his temptations is a classic picture of the Christ coming to restore one of His own.  He comes to us quietly, gently, reassuringly no matter when or where or how we may be cast down. 

Psalm 56:13 we are given an accurate commentary on this aspect of the Christian’s life in these words, “You have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.”

As we take a realistic view of our lives as a Child of God we must remember that all of us at some point of time find ourselves “cast down”.  We discover that often when we are most sure of ourselves we stumble and fall.  Sometimes when we appear to be firm in our faith we find ourselves in a situation of utter frustration and futility.  Paul gives us a warning in I Corinthians 10:12 that would behoove us to remember:  “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!”

As with sheep, so with Christians, some basic principles and parallels apply which will help us to grasp the way in which a man or woman can be cast.

1.  There is, first of all, the idea of looking for a soft spot.  The sheep that choose the comfortable, soft, rounded hollows in the ground in which to lie down very often become cast.  In such a situation it is so easy to roll over on their backs.

In the Christian life there is great danger in always looking for the easy place, the cozy corner, the comfortable position where there is no hardship, no need for endurance, no demand upon self-discipline.  Sometimes if, through self-indulgence, I am unwilling to forfeit or forego the soft life, the easy way, the cozy corner, then the Good Shepherd may well move me to a pasture where things aren’t quite so comfortable-not only for my own good but also His benefit as well.

2.  Some sheep simply have too much wool.  Often when the fleece becomes very long and heavily matted with mud, manure, burrs, and other debris, it is much easier for a sheep to b become cast, literally weighed down with its own wool. 

Wool in Scripture depicts the old self-life (a.k.a. Flesh) in the Christian.  It is the outward expression of an inner attitude, the assertion of my own desire and hopes and aspirations.  It is the area of my life in which and through which I am continually in contact with the world around me.  Here is where I find the clinging accumulation of things, of possessions, of worldly ideas beginning to weigh me down, drag me down, hold me down.  It is important to note here that the high priest was never allowed to wear wool when he entered the Holy of Holies.  This spoke of self, pride, and personal preference-and God could not tolerate it. 

The truth of the matter is that if I want to go on walking with God experiencing His life, joy and peace and not forever be cast down, this is an aspect of my life which He must deal with drastically. 

When a shepherd realizes that a certain sheep is being cast because of this reason he must immediately shear the sheep clean and so forestall the danger of having the ewe lose her life.  Shepherd’s note that this is not always a pleasant process.  Sheep do not really enjoy being sheared, and it represents some hard work for the shepherd, but it must be done.  When it is over sheep and shepherd are relieved.  There is no longer the threat of being cast down, while for the sheep there is the pleasure of being set free from the hot, heavy coat.  often the fleece is clogged with filthy manure, mud, burrs, sticks, and ticks.  What a relief to be rid of it all!  Consequently, this is true for the believer when God sets him free of many fleshly hangups.  There comes a time when the Master must take us in hand and apply the keen cutting edge of His Word to our lives.  It may be a unpleasent business for a time.  No doubt we’ll struggle and kick about but oh, the pleasure of being set free from ourselves!  What restoration!

The third cause of cast sheep is simply that they are too fat.  It is a well-known fact that over-fat sheep are neither the most healthy nor the most productive.  And certainly it is the fattest that most often are cast.  Their weight simply makes it that much harder for them to be agile and nimble on their feet.  Once a shepherd suspects that sheep are being cast for this reason, he will take long-range steps to correct the problem.  He will put the ewes on a more rigorous ration; they will get less grain, and the general condition of the flock will be watched very closely.  It is the aim to see that the sheep are strong, sturdy, and energetic, not fat, flabby and weak. 

In the Christian life, we are confronted with the same problem.  There are men and women who, because they may have done well in business or in their careers or their homes, feel that they are flourishing and have “arrived”.  This sense of well-being and self-assurance is very dangerous.  Often when we are most sure of ourselves we are the most prone to fall.  God warned the church in Revelation 3:17 that though some considered themselves rich and affluent, they were actually spiritual poor and in danger.  It is important to note here that material success is no measure of spiritual health.  Nor is apparent affluence any criteria of real godliness.  The Good Shepherd of our souls will take measures to correct the problem as He sees through the exterior of our lives.  One has said that He may impose on us some sort of “diet” or “discipline” which we may find a bit rough and unpalatable at first.  In this case we need to assure ourselves that this is for our own good because our Shepherd is GOOD and out of His goodness He is very fond of us.  Hebrews 12 speaks of how God chooses to discipline His children.  At the time this may prove to be a rough routine but the deeper truth is that afterward it produces a life of repose and tranquillity free from the fret and frustration of being cast down like a helpless sheep.

This in and of itself should be sufficient to continually refresh and restore my soul.  I know of nothing which so quiets and enlivens my own spiritual life as the knowledge that God knows what He is doing with me!

Hebrews 12:10-13 “For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how.  But God’s discipline is always right and good for us because it means we will share in His holiness.  No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening-it is painful!  But afterward there will be a quiet harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.  So take a new grip with your tired hands and stand firm on your shaky legs.  Mark out a straight path for your feet.  Then those who follow you, though they are weak and lame, will not stumble and fall but will become strong.”

Merry Christmas!!

Dana

Hello everyone!

I am going to take a quick break on the writings on the 23rd Psalm and share a quick thought about Christmas presents but I promise to get back to the 23rd Psalm.  I hope to do another entry on that next week.

Down to the Christmas thought….As I was sitting in church this past Sunday and processing the sermon, which was fantastic, I was able to keep some things in perspective.  It is easy during the holiday season to get totally wrapped up in the hussel and bussel, buying gifts, worrying about the family get-together and wondering if everyone is going to get along until it is easy for us to lose our focus.  Well, this year I have a new theme for the holiday season.  Before I share my new holiday theme, let me ask you a question.  What would be the greatest gift you could receive this year?  More specifically….what would be the greatest gift you could receive from Jesus this year?

Well, here it is……

The greatest present is His presence!  The greatest gift God could give to us is His presence with us and that is exactly what we have dwelling within us!  Christ in you, the hope of Glory!  Just enjoy Jesus this year!  That should be our primary focus.  After  all, it is His birth we are celebrating.

Merry Christmas!

Dana

I Corinthians 2:9-14 “That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.”  But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit.  For the Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets.  No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit.  And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.  When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom.  Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain truths.  But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit.  It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. ”

I Corinthians 2:16b “But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.”

A wonderful aspect of living under the New Covenant of God’s Grace is that we have the priviledge of fellowship and union with Christ.  Part of that fellowship and union is being able to hear God speak to us.  Yes, He speaks!  We often miss it due to our busy lifestyles or our impure motives etc… But I am learning if we stop, take time to listen and be still, He speaks!

Under the New Covenant we now can receive wisdom from the Spirit because we now have the Spirit of the living God within us to talk to us and guide us.  The Holy Spirit is the key to everything in a believer’s life!  I think the enemy of our souls does everything in his power to cause us to miss this because it offers such a vital link to victory.  Because no one knows the thoughts of God except the spirit of God and we have not received the spirit of the world, but the spirit of God inside us.  So we can now understand what God has freely given us.  We literally have the mind of Christ so we can know God’s thoughts and heart on an issue/decision.  This is marvelous news!!

Dana

Sorry I have been away for awhile.  Here is the next part of “The Evidence of A True Believer Part 3 and I have listed the first four points that we have already discussed so far for you:

1.  True Believers believe that Jesus is the Christ.  I John 5:1

2.  True Believers will live in the light as Jesus is in the light.  I John 1:5-7

3.   True Believers have a deep since of their sinfulness.  I John 1:8

4.  True Believers will keep His Commandments.  I John 2:1-2

Now for number 5….

5.  True believers will have a geniune love for others.  I John 2:7-11 

If anyone claims to live in the light yet hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is still living in darkness.  In the NLT the end of verse 11 says that, “such a person is lost, having been blinded by the darkness.”  On over in chapter 4 of I John verses 7–8 say, “Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God.  Anyone who loves is born of God and knows God.  But anyone who does not love does not know God-for God is love.”  Chapter 4 in I John comes right out and tells us what “real love” is…..have you ever thought about it?  Verse 9 confirms that God showed us how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through Him.  We did not love God first but He loved us while we were unlovely, while we were yet sinners as Romans 5:8 says.  Real love is not what Hollywood promotes but real love is that God loved us and sent His only Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.  Obviously this is our standard to love others but we must remember that we can’t do it in our own strength which is why we so need to humble ourselves before our father and examine ourselves and then allow Christ to love others through us.  The last part of verse 16 is quite direct….”God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them.”  Now hear verses 20-21, “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see how can we love God, whom we have not seen?  And God Himself has commanded that we must love not only Him but our Christian brothers and sisters, too.” 

I have purposfully put all the verses in here today so that you can see clearly what the Word of God says.  This is not opinion or even a good idea, it is God’s holy Word spoken to us.  We can’t fake this one….we must have His Holy Spirit living in us and loving through us as we embrace the love that God has for us all.

I John 3:1 “See how very much our heavenly Father loves us, for He allows us to be called His children, and we really are!”

Dana

Hello Everyone,

As I mentioned in the previous blog, this is the first of several blogs about the evidence that will be in our lives reflecting that we are indeed children of God.  We must start here….

#1.  True believers believe that Jesus is the Christ.  I John 5:1

I don’t know that anyone could communicate it any clearer than Steve Green when he sang, “There is no other name but Jesus…”.  What a powerful message that is not very popular with the world due to it’s need to be politically correct.  Jesus himself is quoted in John 14:6 as saying that He is the way, the truth and the life.  Acts 4:12 tells us that there is no other name by which men might be saved.

#2.  If you are a true believer you will live in the light as Jesus is in the light.  I John 5-7

If we say that we are in the light, yet live in spiritual darkness we are only lying and we are not practicing the truth.  God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all.  So there is going to be a difference in our lifestyle verses the world’s lifestyle.

#3.  If we are a true believer we will have a deep sense of our sinfulness.        I John 1:8

If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.  My friend, do you understand repentance?  Are you humbled when you look at the enormous price our Savior had to pay on behalf of your sinfulness?  I Corinthians 6:20 tells us we were bought with a price.  The price that Christ paid for our sin was one that was very, very expensive.  We are literally dead in our sins and transgressions.  We were helpless to save ourselves and doomed to spend an eternity completely separated from God.  Our state “in Adam” was a helpless state and only God could do anything about it.  Out of His deep love for us even while we were yet sinners, Romans tells us, that Christ died for us.  My friend, without Christ we were dead and doomed.  When I think about what my sin caused our Savior to have to endure it breaks my heart and yet….I worship and reach out to Him because without him, as the hymn says, “how lost I would be.”  I realize even now that my feeble attempts at righteousness is as filthy rags before Him.  So you see, our only hope is Christ alone!

Well, I hope these are thought provoking for you and allows you to examine yourself as well.  I was reading in Revelation 21 & 22 this morning and oh, what a glorious place we are going to be called to one day soon.  I feel such an urgency to remind the church to examine herself!  I feel such a burden to participate in the disciplining of the church because there is still much to be done and eternity is so close – even at our doors!  The fields are rich and ripe with the harvest but our workers…..where are they?  Many have been wounded and have abandoned their post.  Many have fallen to temptation and are caught in the holds of sin.  I’m telling you, our time is drawing nigh and many are lost all around us. 

Now, I know some of you may be thinking, “yea, yea….people have been saying that, “the end is coming” or that, “we are living in the last days” for years now and we are still here!”  First of all, we must be careful of our interruption of the term “last days”.  We think that term means within the very near future.  But in the Bible the term was used several times in the New Testament and that was over 2,000 years ago.  So, it is important to note that the Hebrew term “the last days” can also be translated as “in the distant future” (NLT) or “in the days to come” (NIV).  Thus, it is reasonable to conclude that the term “the last days” refers to an indeterminate period of time leading up to the second coming of Jesus Christ.  Now, with that said, I will say that no other generation that has lived has seen what our generation is seeing.  Prophecy fulfilled!  If you are a student of eschatology (the study of end times) and you have been keeping up with what is going on in our world then you know what I am talking about.  You are seeing events unfold and fall into the line of Bible prophecy like never before.  My friend, it is amazing!  It was behoove all of us to pay attention to the Word of God and what is going on in the world today….and literally….. for Heaven’s sake….let’s be busy accomplishing Kingdom agenda items!

Dana

Well…I hope you are ready for this one! 

This past Tuesday morning I was obviously so tired from all our activity over the weekend and had not yet recovered so I was not able to think clearly.  I was taking my dog (Nissi-miniature Schnauzer) out to potty after she finished eating and Tony (my husband) was headed out for work at the same time.  I decided just to head out the back door with him and said goodbye, yet there was this sinking feeling in my stomach and something just said – go out the front door with her like you usually do, but of course….I ignored the thought.  (Big mistake!)  While Nissi and I were in the back yard Tony was about to get in the car and it dawned on me that he might accidental forget I was out there and put the garage door down as he drove off leaving me locked out of the house with no form of communication.  So – I did what any other reasonable person would do.  I hollered up the hill and ask Tony to please leave the door up so I could get back in the house which he was happy to do.  Well, as fate would have it, his mind was on the busy day before him and in about 20 seconds flat he has forgotten my request and hit the button for the garage door as I am still in the backyard with Nissi.  I hear the door going down and see that he is about to be to the street so I tear off running like some mad woman waving my arms in the air and screaming, “Tony!!!”.  Yea – I know….not a pretty site!  At least it was not a Sunday morning when I would have just had in my robe!  Thankfully I was planning on doing a short run so I had put on my running shorts and top but I still had flip flops on and it is pretty difficult to sprint up hill in flip flops while waving your arms in the air and shouting.  Well, I gave it my best effort and was probably just about 5 seconds off from catching him.  I thought he might fiddle with his phone or GPS or something but not on this day.  As I got to the stop sign he had just turned from the next street and my fate was sealed!  I envisioned myself sitting on my back porch with Nissi from 7:30 in the morning until 6:30 in the evening.  Within an instant I am rehearsing thoughts like, “Gee, I’m glad she has eaten already….at least we have cool water from the water hose to drink…I guess I’ll be potty-ing in the woods today….etc…”  As I was still running with the fumes of the exhaust from Tony’s car already evaporating I came face to face with this lady out walking.  The expression on my face must have been one of panic because I think I frightened her a bit.  She ask me if anything was wrong and could she help me.  As soon as I could catch my breath I ask if she had a cell phone and she did.  Thank the Lord for cell phones!!  I was trying to call Tony quickly as he was heading to a clients office on the other side of Atlanta.  I knew if I couldn’t get him then my chances would be hopeless for getting back in the house until he came home that evening.  Well….wouldn’t you know, I couldn’t remember his cell number!  See, we have these engenious little things built into our cell phones called “Contact Lists” and we no longer memorize numbers!  I couldn’t even remember his parent’s numbers, my good friends number or anything!  Strangly, I could only remember my office number!  I tried calling that and leaving a message for Rebecca, our Office Manager hoping that she could call Tony as soon as she got in and maybe he could come home during lunch and let me in.  This would also mean that Rebecca would have to cancel my morning appointments.  I was just fit to be tied.  It is not like me to panic in emergency situations but on this day I just lost my head!  After leaving a very long message for Rebecca, wonder upon wonder….I remember Tony’s cell number!  I was so relieved!  When he gets on the phone and I share my plight he was so sympathic and apologized profusly for putting the door down, but….he then ever so gently reminds me of that little steal gadget that is coded and has a spare key inside!!!  UGGHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I felt like a crazy women!!!  I thanked him for his help….I’m sure he was laughing on the inside, but to his honor he saved me some dignity.  If he did laugh, he never let me know it and then I said my goodbye and let him get back to the task of work.  The lady that was allowing me to use her cell phone walks down to my house with me to help me find Nissi because I tore off like a banchie and left her in the back yard.  Bless her heart….she was sitting on the front porch waiting for me.  She must know her mother is insane sometimes! 

Well, I share this with you because a huge spiritual truth hit me as I came back inside.  I was laughing at myself first and then told the Lord that He would really blow me away if He had something to show me out of this situation and immediatly it hit me!  2 Peter 1:3 “…seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.”  Christ is all we need and if we are Christians then we already have all we need for any situation that we face.  All the provision, power, love, compassion, patience, strength, self control etc….that we need in this life has already been given to us.  Christ meets all of our needs!  Why then do we go chasing after what we think will satisfy and either it remains just out of our reach or we get what we are chasing only to find that it doesn’t completely fulfill us so the chase continues.  All that I need as a child of God I already possess.  As a Christian, I have the answer and that answer is in the person of Jesus Christ. 

Thank you God for being my everything!

Dana

Hello Everyone!

Thank you for your prayers, support and words of encouragement!  I am glad to be on this side of the weekend.  As a matter of fact, I have never been happier to see a Monday come in all my days!  I love running and staying fit but this was a tough one!  Several ask if I would share about my journey and what I experienced during the race so that is what I would like to attempt to do. 

First off, I must say thank you to all those who participated in giving towards my financial support so I can continue doing the ministry of New Life Design.  I was overwhelmed at those who wanted to participate and give.  Each of you have just blown me away with your generosity and love for me and Tony.  We are so grateful for each of you and with the risk of sounding a bit “cheesy”, please know that many lives will be changed because you gave!  May God bless each of you beyond belief for your generosity!

Now for the story….We were all very excited as we left Atlanta on Friday around lunch time.  We arrived at the Race Expo in time to get our numbers and do a little shopping!  If you did not get to see the picture of my shirt let me know.  The caption read, “Running Is Cheaper Than Therapy” Ha-Ha!!.  We had a great dinner that evening with our friends but I think all of us had a hard time sleeping as we were all wondering what kind of race we would have and how “hilly” would the course be. 

Saturday morning the clock went off around 4:20 and I must say I was relieved to be getting up and getting this thing started and done.  I noticed the weather was not very cool but I really didn’t think much about it at first.  We found our corrals and were ready for the start.  The first five miles were done at a very fast pace due to the excitement and push of the crowds.  We were running with about 30,000 other runners.  I should have slowed down after the first mile but I got caught up in the excitement with everyone else.  I was pretty hot by mile 5 and had to do some adjustments with my clothing and re pinning my number which was very frustrating but I didn’t lose very much time because we started out so fast but I had depleted some much needed energy in those first 5 miles and that would come back to haunt me later in the morning.  I was doing pretty good until about mile 10 and it became very apparent that I was not going to be able to keep up my pace.  I was having severe problems with my feet.  I was not sure what the problem was but later learned that I was putting my Body Glide lotion on the wrong parts of my feet which was causing my feet to slip in my shoe which was causing chaffing.  Add that to continuous pounding on pavement that was extremely hot and my feet felt like they were on fire.  By mile 11 when I got to see Tony I was just about in tears and very tempted to split off with the half marathoners and just finish at 13.1 and call it a “bad” day.  He kept encouraging me not to quit in those few moments we had to chat so I decided to tough it out and keep going with the full Marathon.  One really cool thing that God did was as I had started running again after seeing Tony our good friend Glenn Rigby that was running the marathon too had caught up with me and he was a great encouragement and that got me passed the 11.5 mark where all the half marathoners were branching off to head to their finish.  Glenn and I ran together until about mile number 14 and my feet were burning so bad that I just had to walk some at that point.  After mile 15 the cramping and dehydration had hit and it was becoming impossible to run much farther that a couple of tenths at a time.  I stopped at the medical tent after mile 16 and they confirmed my problem with my feet and wrapped them with ace bandages and gave me a new pair of socks and told me that I needed to take some salt packets for the depletion of sodium and potassium.  I’m not sure that I understood all of that due to the frame of mind that I was in.  I tried taking some after mile 17 and the packets got wet so I didn’t get much in my system and there was this awful hill looming in the distance.  The temperature sign on the bank said it was a whooping 80 degrees at this point and I have never in my life seen so many people sick and dropping out of a race.  Ambulance siren’s were heard all around you from time to time and the medical tents were full of people with heat exhaustion and dehydration.  I struggled on to mile 19 because I knew Tony would be there.  I must admit in the back of my mind I secretly had hoped to just tell him that I was going to walk the rest of it and wanted to talk him into walking it with me to keep me company and keep my mind off the pain.  I think every muscle in my legs were cramping at this point and my feet were back to burning again.  When I saw him we walked and talked a moment and he continued to encourage me to keep going but reminded me that there was so shame in bailing out if I needed to.  I decided to keep going, so off I went.  Ironically, at this point our route paralleled the half marathoners route and once again there was the temptation to just hop over there and join them on their 12th mile and head to the finish line and be done with this thing.  The only thing that I can say kept me on my course was God Himself!  The temps were continuing to climb, more people were getting sick and dropping out but I saw an overpass coming up and knew I could stop and stretch for a moment in the shade and that was a God send for sure!  As I stopped off to stretch many more followed suit so I was glad not to be the only one.  After this a tough stretch of road was ahead.  Again there wasn’t any shade and not a cloud in sight.  We got through miles 20-22 on this stretch and it was tough.  At a moment when I really needed to see a friendly face, our friend Sally who had run the half marathon called out my name.  Boy, was she ever smart just doing the half….you know, come to think of it….she is a doctor and all.  Maybe that should tell us all something! She was at the 21 mile marker watching for me and she ran out to chat a few moments, took my picture, gave me some good words of encouragement and took a few things from me to lighten my load (my old, smelly socks, and shirt….what a wonderful Christian servant to carry someones smelly socks-thanks again Sally).  At that point I kept going and headed into Shelby park to finish miles 22-24.  I must tell you, it was a beautiful park but I just hurt to bad to enjoy it!  I stopped at the medical tent again just after mile 23 and through tears told the medic that I was cramping really bad.  He gave me a moment to get myself together and then gave me 3 salt packets and I told him I wasn’t sure I could get that down but he told me that if I wanted to finish I had to take them.  Well, I got all three down and drank some Cytomax Sports drink and headed out once again.  I noticed that after a few moments the cramping seemed to decrease (FINALLY) and I was able to do some serious power walking….and before I knew it I was doing some serious running again and was able to run straight to the finish line!  I was broken hearted at seeing one fellow loaded into an ambulance at the 25.5 mile mark….so close to finishing.  The finish line was the most glorious sight I had seen all day.  They had this sprinkler system going and I went over and just stood there in it forever just relishing the medal around my neck and clinching the stale bagel in my hand.   Funny thing is….I just thought my journey was over at that point but due to the finish line being so crowded with people, Tony couldn’t get anywhere near it so the plan was to meet under the “D” banner in the friends/family reunion area.  As I struggled through the crowds wet and still clinching my stale bagel I couldn’t find the stupid reunion area.  I walked forever only to FINALLY hear Kay hollar “Dana!”  It was so nice to hear a familiar voice.  As they rushed over tears just couldn’t be held back and we all relished the moment of having finished.  At this point…no one really cared about race time because we all knew we were extremely blessed just to have finished on our own two feet.  I got to soak my feet in this barrell of ice water which was really awesome after 26.2 miles!  Afterwards we enjoyed calling our families, exchanging our stories and eating at chick-fli-A….a Kay Rigby favorite! 

If you had asked me on Saturday afternoon or on Sunday what I thought God wanted me to learn out of the experience, quite honestly I would have said, “NOTHING!”  I was a little disappointed in how the race went, my time, the weather etc….  We had felt so good about our training, the race itself and all our prep going into it and so for the day to just turn into a disaster I was a little confused.  But on Monday morning the fog began to clear and I started putting together a few points of how the marathon coincides with our faith walk with Jesus Christ.  I am going to go ahead an apologize for leaving you hanging here but I am going to have to finish the points tomorrow due to our Board of Directors Meeting being tonight.  So tune in tomorrow afternoon for some interesting parralls about life and marathon running!

See you tomorrow!

Dana