He Cares A Lot
At times I am so distressed
Yet still I worry not
For I believe that Jesus cares
And that He cares a lot .
He feeds the sparrows of the air ,
Clothes flowers of the field
And He will all my needs supply
If self to Him I yield .
So I must closer draw to Him ,
My faith must stronger grow
For I know that He cares a lot
And that He loves me so .
Jan Bagwell
God Bless !!
Cast all your cares upon Him because He cares for you .
1 Peter 5:7
Friday, September 17, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Heart's Sacrifice
Heart's Sacrifice
"But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ" (Phil. 3:7).
When they buried the blind preacher, George Matheson, they lined his grave with red roses in memory of his love-life of sacrifice. And it was this man, so beautifully and significantly honored, who wrote,
"O Love that wilt not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in Thee,
I give Thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.
"O Light that followest all my way,
I yield my flickering torch to Thee,
My heart restores its borrowed ray,
That in Thy sunshine's blaze its day
May brighter, fairer be.
"O Joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to Thee,
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shalt tearless be.
"O Cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from Thee,
I lay in dust life's glory dead,
And from the ground there blossoms red,
Life that shall endless be."
There is a legend of an artist who had found the secret of a wonderful red which no other artist could imitate. The secret of his color died with him. But after his death an old wound was discovered over his heart. This revealed the source of the matchless hue in his pictures. The legend teaches that no great achievement can be made, no lofty attainment reached, nothing of much value to the world done, save at the cost of heart's blood.
Jan Bagwell
God Bless !!
"But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ" (Phil. 3:7).
When they buried the blind preacher, George Matheson, they lined his grave with red roses in memory of his love-life of sacrifice. And it was this man, so beautifully and significantly honored, who wrote,
"O Love that wilt not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in Thee,
I give Thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.
"O Light that followest all my way,
I yield my flickering torch to Thee,
My heart restores its borrowed ray,
That in Thy sunshine's blaze its day
May brighter, fairer be.
"O Joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to Thee,
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shalt tearless be.
"O Cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from Thee,
I lay in dust life's glory dead,
And from the ground there blossoms red,
Life that shall endless be."
There is a legend of an artist who had found the secret of a wonderful red which no other artist could imitate. The secret of his color died with him. But after his death an old wound was discovered over his heart. This revealed the source of the matchless hue in his pictures. The legend teaches that no great achievement can be made, no lofty attainment reached, nothing of much value to the world done, save at the cost of heart's blood.
Jan Bagwell
God Bless !!
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
God is Cooking up Something Good
God is Cooking Up Something Good
We had friends stay with us this weekend, and Saturday morning
we took them to the open market in downtown Tallahassee. The
weather was perfect, and the vendors were selling everything
from classy art to kettle corn. Live entertainment was
presented near a sign that read “Donations = Music.”
My wife decided to buy a watermelon, as long as it met one
important criterion: “Is it seedless?” The man’s lips moved,
and made a sound like, “Yes.”
We fell for the illusion, which only wore off hours later as we
stared at a watermelon with more seeds than there are fans at a
Marlins’ game. The children hung their heads in disappointment
and went back to beating each other with sticks.
I, however, was suddenly coping with a suppressed memory. As I
stared at the melon it came to me. “Yes? Yes! I think we had
watermelons like this when I was kid. Watermelons with…seeds!”
My Mom Invented Chicken Strips
My wife will try to tell you that my mother must have picked all
the seeds out for me as a child. No; but one thing my mom did
do was invent chicken strips. That was long before they sold
them at stores or restaurants. Mom was the first one I ever
heard of doing such a thing, taking the bones out of the white
meat and making delicious little breaded strips of chicken.
I guess that was my favorite meal growing up. It was so much
better than chicken with bones in it, and I still feel that way.
I mean, take eating wings, for example. Have you ever tried to
satisfy your hunger eating wings? You’re actually burning more
calories working at it than you’re taking in. Eating chicken
wings has a negative calorie ratio.
Give me the boneless chicken any day, just like Mom used to make
it.
I want to honor my mother right now for all the meals she made
for us back when we were ungrateful brats who complained about
eating anything but candy. She could have thrown the whole
chicken on the table and screamed, “I hope you choke on the
bones!” Iinstead she lovingly slaved away in the kitchen,
preparing thousands of meals so we could grow up, move away and
send her a card every May with no money in it.
Good Cooking Takes Time
Yesterday in church this thought popped into my head, “God is
cooking up something good.” And I thought of the whole process
of cooking. It requires planning, getting all the ingredients,
having all the right tools, mixing everything together just
right, and on and on. One thing for sure, cooking up something
good takes a lot of time.
I confess I am part of the impatient generation. You know what
I’ve started doing? When I warm up my coffee in the microwave,
instead of pushing the 3 then the 0, I will push the 3 twice
so I don’t have to take the time to move my finger down to the
zero. Then before it’s done I’ll get tired of waiting and just
pull it out with 2 seconds left.
Our impatience sometimes leads us to believe that God is doing
nothing so we must do it for ourselves. Well let me tell you, I
believe that God is cooking up something good for each one of
us, if we will just be patient.
Don’t Rush It
Think of Abraham and Sarah. God told them they would have a son,
even though Sara was too old. They believed God - at first;
but then it didn’t happen quickly enough so they took matters
into their own hands. Through a surrogate mother they gave
birth to Ishmael, who was a thorn in their side from then on.
Meanwhile, God was still cooking up something good, and in His
perfect timing, Sara gave birth to Isaac. And through Isaac
came Moses and David and Solomon and even Jesus.
God Has a Wonderful Plan for Your Life
It may be an over-used statement, but it’s still true. God has
a wonderful plan for your life. He is cooking up something
good. Yes, it will take time, and there a lot of ingredients He
has to pull together to do it.
But once it’s done and you’re dining at the Master’s table,
you’ll realize it was well worth the wait.
Jan Bagwell
God Bless
Thank you Doug Chapman for this letter .
We had friends stay with us this weekend, and Saturday morning
we took them to the open market in downtown Tallahassee. The
weather was perfect, and the vendors were selling everything
from classy art to kettle corn. Live entertainment was
presented near a sign that read “Donations = Music.”
My wife decided to buy a watermelon, as long as it met one
important criterion: “Is it seedless?” The man’s lips moved,
and made a sound like, “Yes.”
We fell for the illusion, which only wore off hours later as we
stared at a watermelon with more seeds than there are fans at a
Marlins’ game. The children hung their heads in disappointment
and went back to beating each other with sticks.
I, however, was suddenly coping with a suppressed memory. As I
stared at the melon it came to me. “Yes? Yes! I think we had
watermelons like this when I was kid. Watermelons with…seeds!”
My Mom Invented Chicken Strips
My wife will try to tell you that my mother must have picked all
the seeds out for me as a child. No; but one thing my mom did
do was invent chicken strips. That was long before they sold
them at stores or restaurants. Mom was the first one I ever
heard of doing such a thing, taking the bones out of the white
meat and making delicious little breaded strips of chicken.
I guess that was my favorite meal growing up. It was so much
better than chicken with bones in it, and I still feel that way.
I mean, take eating wings, for example. Have you ever tried to
satisfy your hunger eating wings? You’re actually burning more
calories working at it than you’re taking in. Eating chicken
wings has a negative calorie ratio.
Give me the boneless chicken any day, just like Mom used to make
it.
I want to honor my mother right now for all the meals she made
for us back when we were ungrateful brats who complained about
eating anything but candy. She could have thrown the whole
chicken on the table and screamed, “I hope you choke on the
bones!” Iinstead she lovingly slaved away in the kitchen,
preparing thousands of meals so we could grow up, move away and
send her a card every May with no money in it.
Good Cooking Takes Time
Yesterday in church this thought popped into my head, “God is
cooking up something good.” And I thought of the whole process
of cooking. It requires planning, getting all the ingredients,
having all the right tools, mixing everything together just
right, and on and on. One thing for sure, cooking up something
good takes a lot of time.
I confess I am part of the impatient generation. You know what
I’ve started doing? When I warm up my coffee in the microwave,
instead of pushing the 3 then the 0, I will push the 3 twice
so I don’t have to take the time to move my finger down to the
zero. Then before it’s done I’ll get tired of waiting and just
pull it out with 2 seconds left.
Our impatience sometimes leads us to believe that God is doing
nothing so we must do it for ourselves. Well let me tell you, I
believe that God is cooking up something good for each one of
us, if we will just be patient.
Don’t Rush It
Think of Abraham and Sarah. God told them they would have a son,
even though Sara was too old. They believed God - at first;
but then it didn’t happen quickly enough so they took matters
into their own hands. Through a surrogate mother they gave
birth to Ishmael, who was a thorn in their side from then on.
Meanwhile, God was still cooking up something good, and in His
perfect timing, Sara gave birth to Isaac. And through Isaac
came Moses and David and Solomon and even Jesus.
God Has a Wonderful Plan for Your Life
It may be an over-used statement, but it’s still true. God has
a wonderful plan for your life. He is cooking up something
good. Yes, it will take time, and there a lot of ingredients He
has to pull together to do it.
But once it’s done and you’re dining at the Master’s table,
you’ll realize it was well worth the wait.
Jan Bagwell
God Bless
Thank you Doug Chapman for this letter .
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Let Your Wish Become a Prayer
Let Your Wish Become a Prayer
Put your dearest wish
in God’s hands today
And discuss it with Him
as you faithfully pray ,
And you can be sure
your wish will come true
If God feels that your wish
Will be good for you ,
For there’s no problem too big
and no question too small ,
Just ask God in faith
And He’ll answer them all ,
Not always at once ,
so be patient and wait
For God never comes
too soon or too late .
So trust in His wisdom
and believe in His Word ,
For no prayer’s unanswered
and no prayer’s unheard .
Jan Bagwell
God Bless
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him , and he will act
Psalm 37:5
Put your dearest wish
in God’s hands today
And discuss it with Him
as you faithfully pray ,
And you can be sure
your wish will come true
If God feels that your wish
Will be good for you ,
For there’s no problem too big
and no question too small ,
Just ask God in faith
And He’ll answer them all ,
Not always at once ,
so be patient and wait
For God never comes
too soon or too late .
So trust in His wisdom
and believe in His Word ,
For no prayer’s unanswered
and no prayer’s unheard .
Jan Bagwell
God Bless
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him , and he will act
Psalm 37:5
Monday, September 13, 2010
Hurt!!
Hurt!!
Dear Jan
This story changed my life and I thought maybe it could change
others too, so I'm sharing it with you.
This story was told to me by my sister, whom it happened to.
She was really upset because she hadn't seen or spoken to her best
friend Jim in a couple of weeks. Finally he shows up at her door and
commands her to get dressed and go riding with him. So she
finally does.
As they were riding, they passed a garden full of flowers.
Jim says "Do you see those flowers?"
"Yes," she says.
"Do you think that when someone steps on those flowers that they
lie there and feel sorry for themselves?" Jim asks.
"No."
"No, they immediately start to mend their wounds so they can
heal, and grow strong and healthy!"
They ride a little further and Jim points up in a tree,
"You see those squirrels up there?
Do you think that when people shoot at them they go hide
forever?"
"No," she says.
About that time the ocean comes into sight.
Jim says "You see that ocean out there?
Do you think that when there's a hurricane out there that the
ocean doesn't go back out because it's afraid to face the
storm?"
"No," she says.
"Then, why have you stopped living because you have been hurt?"
That story really hit me like a ton of bricks!
The worst part was the fact that Jim died a short time later.
And that's when she realized how much precious time she wasted.
Why have you stopped living because you have been hurt?
Thanks Donna , for sharing this testimony
Jan Bagwell
God Bless , take time to call a friend today and enjoy their company !
Dear Jan
This story changed my life and I thought maybe it could change
others too, so I'm sharing it with you.
This story was told to me by my sister, whom it happened to.
She was really upset because she hadn't seen or spoken to her best
friend Jim in a couple of weeks. Finally he shows up at her door and
commands her to get dressed and go riding with him. So she
finally does.
As they were riding, they passed a garden full of flowers.
Jim says "Do you see those flowers?"
"Yes," she says.
"Do you think that when someone steps on those flowers that they
lie there and feel sorry for themselves?" Jim asks.
"No."
"No, they immediately start to mend their wounds so they can
heal, and grow strong and healthy!"
They ride a little further and Jim points up in a tree,
"You see those squirrels up there?
Do you think that when people shoot at them they go hide
forever?"
"No," she says.
About that time the ocean comes into sight.
Jim says "You see that ocean out there?
Do you think that when there's a hurricane out there that the
ocean doesn't go back out because it's afraid to face the
storm?"
"No," she says.
"Then, why have you stopped living because you have been hurt?"
That story really hit me like a ton of bricks!
The worst part was the fact that Jim died a short time later.
And that's when she realized how much precious time she wasted.
Why have you stopped living because you have been hurt?
Thanks Donna , for sharing this testimony
Jan Bagwell
God Bless , take time to call a friend today and enjoy their company !
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