Today is Easter Sunday. The day Jesus rose from the dead. Definitely a New Beginning. This time of year means so much to me. I am reminded of how much Jesus loved me. So much that he suffered more than any of us could ever imagine - being beaten, mocked, and hung on a cross to die. And the worst - being separated from God before he died. And he did all that for me - for us - so that we could spend eternity with Him in heaven. All we have to do is accept his gift of salvation.
This time of year also starts spring - more new beginnings. The trees starting to bloom, flowers coming up, grass getting green (and needing mowed). Another reminder of our Lord's resurrection. I love spring - I feel God around me in so many ways. This year also God is answering some prayers - new beginnings.
Another new beginning for us is the church/fellowship we have started to attend. It is what we have been seeking and asking God for and He has answered. It is a gathering of fellow believers who love the Lord very much. They meet in a building they rent monthly and have been meeting there for over 3 years. Nothing fancy - no impressive building, no building fund, no nursery, no special programs. They meet, sing praises to the Lord, worship Him, learn about His Word, and the tithes we give go to mission funds, special needs, etc. There is a fellowship/lunch following services and the people there are wonderful. Not a big group but BIG in the love of God!! "Thank you Lord for guiding us to this group of believers who love you so much and live FOR YOU!!"
I am looking forward to this spring and all it will bring. Beauty in the world around us and beauty in all I can do for the Lord.
To Those I Love and Those Who Love Me
When I am gone, release me, let me go -
I have so many things to see and do.
You mustn't tie yourself to me with tears,
Be thankful for our beautiful years.
I gave to you my love. You can only guess
How much you gave to me in happiness...
I thank you for the love you each have shown,
But now it's time I traveled on alone.
So grieve a while for me, if grieve you must,
Then let your grief be comforted by trust.
It's only for a time that we must part,
So bless the memories within your heart.
I won't be far away, for life goes on.
So if you need me, call and I will come...
Though you can't see or touch me, I'll be near.
And if you listen with your heart, you'll hear
All my love around you soft and clear.
And then when you come this way alone,
I'll greet you with a smile, and say --
"WELCOME HOME!'
The poem above was displayed at Mom's funeral. It has always touched my heart and I felt I needed to see and hear it again today. Mom is never far away - she is always in my heart and my memories. And as the poem says, if I listen with my heart - I can hear her love all around me. Mom was always there for all of us - no matter what. And she will be there again, waiting for us, with Jesus in heaven - waiting to say - WELCOME HOME!
"I LOVE YOU MOM!"
Four years ago today, Mom - you left this world for a much better place. As I was driving home from work tonight, I was thinking that it was just about that time of day that you left us. I was already on the plane, heading toward you and you had already left us. I like to think you passed me in the air and smiled on me. Cause you knew how much I was afraid of flying. I remember that day very well. It was filled with a lot of sorrow for me but when I look back on it now - I know it was a blessed day for you. For you are now with Jesus in heaven and dancing with Him and the angels. And I like to think that Thea is there with you - following you everywhere and sitting on your lap.
Tomorrow I will take my annual trip to the top of the mountain and send a balloon up to you. This year there will be no Thea to go with me. So I will be tying a balloon for her to your balloon. You can let her chase it!! It will be hard to go up there alone - but I will have Jesus with me. He is ALWAYS with me. Without Him, I can do nothing. With Him, I can do anything!!
I LOVE BIG CATS!!! Not house cats - BIG CATS!!! My favorites are leopards and tigers. Then I like cougars. Recently we received at work a brochure on a "big cat sanctuary" located west of Knoxville that has been there many years. The 
University of Tennessee sent the brochures - 
their College of Veterinary Medicine doctors are the vets for these big cats. They have a wonderful website - www.tigerhaven.org. Check it out. After looking over the website and reading all the information on these big cats, Terri and I decided to "adopt" one. Basically it is a small yearly donation but you get to pick one of the cats to adopt. You get an 8x10 picture, a biography on the cat, and a certificate of adoption. The picture with the head shot of the big cat is the Clouded Leopard we adopted - Bali. We have not received her picture or biography yet but isn't she beautiful!! The Clouded Leopard is smaller than a regular leopard. And they are so pretty. Their numbers are diminishing in the wild. The other picture is a full shot of a Clouded Leopard. There is another website that is interesting on just the Clouded Leopards - www.cloudedleopard.org. After reading some of the stories on the cats at Tiger Haven, I can't believe people would do this to an animal. I believe if you can't take care of an animal or handle it, DON'T GET ONE!!! I may have an occasional post on the plight of some of these big cats. Wish I could do more but maybe just making people aware of what is happening to them will be a help. If you want to help Tiger Haven - maybe you too could "adopt a cat"!!
Terri and I went to Wal-Mart today after lunch to get a few things and Terri was told some news that really affected me. One of her assistant store managers, Chandra (who I saw Friday - she was shrink-wrapped to a pole in Wal-Mart to raise money for a local charity), was killed in an automobile accident Saturday. In the blink of an eye - she was gone. That quick. No warning. Nothing. This feeling has come upon me before when someone that I knew or Terri knew died suddenly. It makes me stop and realize how precious our relationships with family, friends, and fellow human beings are. Everyone is a creation of God but not everyone knows Jesus as their personal savior. Those are the ones that I cry for. The ones I pray for. I don't want anyone to spend eternity in hell just because they won't accept the gift of salvation that God gave us - his son Jesus. People say they believe in God. But do they REALLY know what that means? Have they asked for forgiveness of their sin and asked Jesus into their heart? Do they really KNOW Jesus died for US so we can spend eternity with Him? That He is the son of God, died for our sins and rose again 3 days later? So many people think it is so difficult to get to heaven. It is not - if you truly believe:
"That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved." Romans 10:9-10
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." Ephesians 2:8-9
We cannot "work" our way into heaven - we get to heaven by grace, through faith - by believing in Jesus and confessing our sins and asking for forgiveness. I know, without a doubt, that Jesus is my savior and I will spend eternity with Him.
This young lady who died, Chandra, we think was a Christian, but are not positive. I hope she was. When something like this happens, I want to just hug everyone I know and tell them I love them. Because I may not be here tomorrow. I want them to know how special they are. I want to live my life in the way I know Jesus would want me to - giving glory and honor to Him, to do everything I do FOR Him. Even the little things. I want to do this not because it will get me into heaven but because I love Jesus and want others to know that I do and that they can too. And ask them to not put off till tomorrow their acceptance of God's gift of salvation - accepting Jesus as their savior - their personal savior. Because tomorrow may be too late --- In the Blink of an Eye---Are YOU Ready?
