Grandpa!

Many of you have seen pictures of babies like this before. The cute baby is wrapped up and squinty eyed, usually holding its hands together like this one. BUT as most people will just move on to see another baby picture and not think twice about this one, I will always see this baby differently!

Why? Because I'm this baby's Grandpa! That make this special life VERY special to me.

Let me introduce my Grand-daughter to you, this is Quinn Everley Walsh. Born to parents Patrick and Jenny Walsh on April 8, 2010. I will not ask you if you think she's beautiful, but I will tell you I think she is beautiful ... in my eyes she looks like her mother, my first born Jenny. I can see it! Our prayer is she grows up knowing that she is loved and God has a purpose in her life that is beyond measure.

The grandpa thing is exciting to me too, as I loved my Grandpy. Grandpy was so special to me and we always had so much fun. I live my life today in many respects to the way he loved me. That make this Grand-baby special to her Grandpa. Besides that - I love her mother so much. As a child Jenny and I had so much fun playing around together. We did so much and laughed all the time. I'm sure she will do the same with Quinn, and someday I will love Quinn just like Grandpy loved me.

Welcome to this world sweet Grand-baby Quinn.

I love you!

Grace on their Face!

In the gospel of John chapter 1:14 the writer states, "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory as of the only begotten from the Father full of grace and truth."

As you look at the picture presented of my three younger children and their grandmother you can see LIFE in their faces! The pure enjoyment of being together is obvious and the sounds of hearing them laugh is seen as they pose for the camera. Grandmother, on the other hand, is soaking in the moment! LOVE is bouncing off each other and into one another's hearts. The LIGHT in each of their faces says, "I'm here, alive, having fun, and feel safe, and loved."

Time travels so fast, and before you know it - children are grown up, parents are older, and even you feel the age within your bones. Funny thing is with God there is no TIME, only Grace and Truth.

If grace truly lives in our hearts as we walk daily with God, why is it not on our face? I realize life is not always what we thought, but God's Word remains the same - "full of grace and truth".

Just a thought - get some GRACE back on your FACE. Live as though you didn't need to worry about anything because God is in control. He loves us!

Keep giggling ... it's a brand new day!

When Forgiveness Begins

Failing someone or yourself leads to guilt and remorse of some level in your heart and mind. The pain we feel and the fear of the unknown results of that failure overwhelms our emotions to the point of becoming bigger than the failure itself. Why?

Why do we allow ourselves to feel bitter against someone or our self enough to block any and all love that is available but ignored because of our own weak self image and lack of forgiveness? I believe its due to the failure to accept and understand the love of God. Let me explain.

In 1 John 4:7-9 it says, "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him." In this simple writing we get confused about love because we thought love came from within our own heart and it does. But love was placed in your heart from the maker of love and the maker of life ... God. Love comes from God, because God is love.

When does God forgive us when we have failed? Immediately. Do we need to ask for forgiveness? Yes, but He has forgiven you already because He loves you forever. We, on the other hand, cannot forgive ourselves or others that quickly. This becomes our problem and guilt is born along with bitterness. We are the makers of that guilt and bitterness, not God. At that moment we try to be God, but without the love.

As children disobey parents, the love of the parent does not stop. Parents love their children beyond the child's own comprehension. When children fail parents are not pleased, but love does not leave. Parents wait for their request for forgiveness, but have already forgiven them. Just as God loves us, we are forgiven before forgiveness is asked.

I have failed loved ones in my past, and have failed God in my past. I have come to realize that although I know God's promises are true and His love (and forgiveness) never fail, others may choose not to forgive me, even after multiple attempts of asking for their forgiveness. I still love them very much, but their lack of accepting my request for forgiveness is only stalling my open arms of loving them, as I have always done. They have 'created' bitterness and lack of forgiveness themselves and choose not to love.

"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him." 1 John 4:7-9

No one is perfect and everyone makes mistakes - that's part of life. The freeing part of being born in this failure of humanity is we have a Creator who loves us, forgave us, and has a plan to use His love in our lives to love others, as we should.

Father, please forgive me for my past and future failures. Help me to forgive myself as you have forgiven me. Bless those who I have failed and are struggling to forgive me, and give them all they are asking You for today. In His Love, Amen.

Biofuel Faith

Sounds weird, looks weird, and even hard to believe but scientists are taking Mustard Seeds grown in California and making a biofuel! These tiny seeds will be grown in the off-season as not to take the ground of normal food crops during their normal growing time. These mustard seeds will produce biofuel for buses and other transit vehicles in our own country.

The size of our faith required to trust God is compared to a Mustard Seed in Matthew 17:20. If we were to have enough faith as the size of a tiny mustard seed we could "move mountains"! How does that work?

Oswald Chambers says, " Faith brings us into a right relationship with God and gives God his opportunity. He frequently has to knock the bottom out of our experience to get us into contact with himself. God wants you to understand it is a life of faith - not a life of sentimental enjoyment of his blessings - that pleases him. Faith by its very nature must be tried. And the real trial of faith is not that we find it difficult to trust God, but that God's character has to be clear in our minds so that we remain true to God whatever he may do. 'Though he slay me, ' announced Job, 'yet will I hope in him.' This is the most sublime utterance of faith in the whole Bible." (emphasis added)

So as we 'run out of gas' in our own lives of faithless living, shouldn't we just add a drop of faith (about the size of a mustard seed) into our life? This is not a faith in myself or any other thing in my life. This is faith in God - who you can't see, hear, or touch. You must experience a relationship buy trusting in the One who Created you. Don't ignore Him anymore - put your faith in him.

Rest in him.

And relax.

Sounds weird, looks weird, and even hard to believe, but faith works that way!

Filler up, please!

Obedience vs. Knowledge

Are you ever afraid to cross over bridges? Guess it depends upon many factors ... how long, how high, are there guard rails on the side, is it cloudy, or who is driving? Right!?

When we are trying to simply get from one side to the other, and we've not been on this path before it gets a bit precarious at times.

What happens when someone in authority tells us what to do ... to cross over somewhere you've never been before? Do you resist or do trust? Guess it depends upon many factors ... how long, how high (are the demands), are there guard rails, is it clear what is on the other side, or who is driving? Right!?

It's so different when it is my idea compared to someone else telling me to do it, especially when my parents, boss, or even God tells me to do something I really don't know I need or want to do.

When obedience is truly applied for the first time in your life you have no idea what to expect on the other side. All circumstances of crossing over are unknown, you've never experienced this before. The next time you are challenged to crossover, you act on knowledge and not true obedience. Another way to consider this would be: obedience requires trust, when knowledge depends on experience.

So what, you say? Living life is so much more exciting and rewarding when we obey. Please don't misunderstand, living life with knowledge is good and proper. Look at the picture above. What if you were the person who was told to build that bridge? You had no idea that so many people depended on your obedience, so many would benefit from your actions, and think of accomplishment and reward. It would last and span for lifetimes! The knowledge you would bring into that decision, and the knowledge you would accumulate through that obedience would be priceless. It would take faith, another word for trust, to begin such a task - a journey.

What are you facing today that you are resisting? Is someone telling you to do something that you know is right, but you don't know how to do it? That's familiar with so many of us. We depend upon ourself too much of the time. We tend to do things in life our own way. Much like our parents, teachers, and coaches who know what is good for us; God has created us to trust and obey Him. The problem is we resist and accomplish little in our life.

Today - build a bridge. The reward is great and the benefits are endless. The bridge maybe something as incredable as the one pictured above, or it may be a simple bridge of trust in the God of eternity. Truth is, we are all heading somewhere. Where are you going?