Mental Musings

"Elijah was a man just like us" (James 5:17a NIV) • Elijah was human, just like we are • The same Elijah that God used to perform many miracles • Not a minor prophet, but one of the “supermen” among prophets • When Jesus wanted to see some old friends from heaven, it was Elijah and Moses who appeared before Him on the mount Remember Elijah? • He prayed for the rain to be held back and for 3 ½ years…and it did • He prayed for the rain to come…and it did • He asked for the last of a woman’s flour during the drought…and her jar never emptied • He prayed for her dead son…and he came back to life • Elijah talked with God • Elijah walked with God • Elijah argued with God • Elijah did not die…he was caught straight up into heaven by a fiery chariot • When Elisha used the cloak of Elijah…the waters of the Jordan River parted • And just at the height of his greatest achievement…Elijah ran for his life and hid in a valley • He complained tha

I received one of those lovely little anonymous cards from a church member in the mail today. The envelope had an index card inside with the hand printed note (grammatical errors left as written): "I was sick Sunday so I listen to the service on radio the next time you try to sing try it under water it will sure sound better." I thought it was funny at first, but it still bothered me that anybody could be so cruel. If this person would say this to their minister of music, what would they say to the average soloist from church? I hope that they are just somebody that is mad at me and not just generally mean spirited.

“Turmoil accompanies every great change…And we have experienced more than our share, for we are agents of that very change.” Brisingr by Christopher Paolini

I understand that many, if not most, Christian denominations do not open voting for all members of the church. In the Southern Baptist Denomination, members are allowed to vote on virtually everything about the church. Some churches limit what must come before the church for a vote (yearly budget, calling new minister, changing by-laws, etc.) while others require that everything must come before the church for a vote, including decisions to purchase toilet paper from a new supplier. What I am interested in is how your church determines who can vote. Do they allow every church member the opportunity to vote? Do they have an age requirement? Do they differentiate between active and inactive members? I also would like to know who you think should be allowed to vote in your church. I personally do not think that every member should get to vote. I think that only the spiritual leaders of a church should be involved in making the decisions of where and what the church does. Opening voting to

His Will? © 2000, Stephen R. Poole Cast: James, the brother of Jesus—good introduction for the Book of James Pastor, Brother, Bishop, even Rabbi. I have heard it all. Few people knew what to call me at the start. Some felt that I was not the right person, they questioned my authority. And, to tell the truth, I wasn’t even sure that I should be there myself. I would like to say that my faith held strong everyday of my life, but ministry has a way of wearing you down at times. I know that my mother was not prepared the day I announced to the family what I would be doing. After all, her first born was only in the ministry for 3 years before He was brutally beaten and later killed for doing God’s will. Just how do you know what God’s will is, anyway? I have had many people ask me that very question. It is a difficult thing at times. My brother never questioned the will of God. I know that he had His own desires, but He always did what God wanted even to the very end. He said that God had g

I should be sleeping, but I can’t seem to get to sleep. I don’t like posting such personal information…but since I can’t quit thinking about it, I thought that maybe writing about it would help me to finally get to sleep. We received a summons today from a Circuit Court in Florida notifying us that our primary mortgage lender is suing us. Basically it is their first step in foreclosing on our house in Florida . It has been on the market for almost 15 months and we were making double mortgage payments for 9 of those months before we ran out of our savings. We took out a second mortgage on that house to pay our down payments on our current home. We had the house listed for about $20k less than we owe on the two mortgages. It is sad that we can’t sell it for $90k less than what it was appraised for just 2 ½ years ago. We did have one offer, but the contract was contingent on both banks accepting a short sale. The primary mortgage lender refused the short sale because it was for

We have dealt with special needs children for almost 13 years. Of course, we did not know about it the first five years. Following the diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrom and ADHD with our oldest son, I started to work on a guide for churches in working with special needs individuals. Why? Because the two churches that I had served at during those first five years did not handle things well. I communicated with parents of other special needs children and learned that very few churches are very welcoming to families of those with special needs. We were very happy when the children's minister from our current church contacted us prior to moving here to ask how they could help educate the children's workers about the special needs of our two boys. She found many articles and books about working with special needs children and held a special meeting with the various workers to describe a plan for dealing with the individual needs they would encounter. Not everything has continued a

I wrote this for a Senior Adult luncheon in Florida. They were rolling on the floor laughing. 64 Going on 65 © 2004 Steve Poole This can be sung to the song, “Sixteen Going on Seventeen” from Sound of Music You’re right on the edge of a new life now And there’s something you’ll soon see The phone calls, all day, they will never end And they’ll all be from A A R P You are 64 going on 65 Baby, it’s time to think! Better beware, be canny and careful, Baby, you’re on the brink! You are 64 going on 65 Here is some free advice Eat all you can at MickeyDees and BKs The coffee there is half price Totally unprepared are you Your brain it will go numb Timid and shy and scared are you Of living on fixed income You need someone older and wiser Telling you what to do I am 69 going on 70 I’ll take care of you You are 64 going on 65 You know that you’re naïve Investors you meet will tell you they’re free And willingly you’ll believe You are 64 going on 65 The youth they will all take flight You’re de

I planned this service in 1995. ====== Please enter into tonight’s service humbly in silence and meditation. There will be no words spoken, so you need to follow the bulletin closely. We pray that this service will be a meaningful one for you. Come in …be seated …be still for a season …pray …and reflect with us upon the matchless love and grace of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Not a word will be spoken during this entire service. The only sound will be that of the piano as some familiar hymns of Christmas and Calvary are played. “Be silent, O all flesh, before the Lord.” (Zechariah 2:13 KJV) Prelude “Kings of Orient” Removal of the Cloth “What Child Is This” Scripture Meditation “When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” (John 8:12 NIV) “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people li