10.25.06

Beyond the Sacred Page

Posted in Uncategorized on October 25th, 2006 at 12:50 pm by Bobby Valentine

by Bobby Valentine

When I was growing up, I did not understand what it meant to worship God. And I may not now.  Oh, I knew about "going to church" and not singing with an instrument.  I knew about taking communion every Sunday too.  But I did not know what worship was or really how to do it. In fact I was a fifth year senior in "Bible College" before it dawned on me that I did not know how to worship God.

It happened on a mission trip to Pensacola, Florida in 1992.  The Spirit had used me to lead a lady to the Lord.  After her baptism she requested something of me that no one had ever asked before.  She said, "Bobby can you teach me how to worship Jesus?"  I was so stunned I was at a loss for words.  I stammered some non-sense about "just attend worship" but it was a hallow answer devoid of any real meaning.

I came home from that trip despondant.  Here I was attempting to "win souls for Christ" and discovered I was the one needing to be found.  It soon became evident that I was not the only one who did not know how to worship. Sure I could go through some prescribed "acts" but I did not worship, really worship!

Not long after this the preacher where I attended led us in "Break Thou the Bread of Life" by Mary Lathbury.  The words of that hymn I had sung before, yet for the first time their meaning hit my heart:

"Break Thou the bread of Life, Dear Lord to Me,
As Thou didst break the loaves beside the sea;
Beyond the sacred page, I see Thee, Lord; my spirit
pants for Thee, O Living Word."

It dawned on my that my spirit did not pant for the Living Word. I had never sought the Lord beyond the sacred page.  I didn’t know how to worship because I did not know who the Living Word was.  I knew a book, a sacred page, but not the Living Word.

I learned to worship when I learned I don’t have a relationship with a book but with a person, a Savior.  I learned to worship when I sought Jesus and not a ritual.  I learned I could only encounter the Living Word beyond the sacre page.  Seek Jesus.  Once you really see him, then we may join Mary Lathbury and say "My spirit pants for Thee, O Living Word."

Bobby Valentine

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10.21.06

Still In Front Of Me Today

Posted in Uncategorized on October 21st, 2006 at 5:21 am by Danny Sims

By Danny Sims

Hall of Fame member.

Dallas Cowboy Ring of Honor.

One of the greatest of all-time.

Rayfield Wright is all of the above. And he is so much more. I’m blessed that he has agreed to come speak for our church in Fort Worth on Wednesday December 13. If you can be in Fort Worth that evening please join us at the Altamesa Church of Christ.

I recently read his book, Wright Up Front and just have to share this story, when as a young boy he lived in Griffin, Georgia and experienced faith and prayer with his grandmother, “Big Mama.”

You can order Rayfield Wright’s book here.

Big Mama was an early riser and, since I loved being with her, I would always begin my day with her. Our first chore was to start the fire in the fireplaces and stove to heat the house. Then we would get on bended knees and pray. She had an amazing relationship with the lord, and constantly gave Him thanks and praise. I always knelt down beside her as she prayed.

One day, at the age of 10, I knelt down beside the bed to pray our morning prayer. I quietly asked, “Big Mama, may I lead the prayer this morning?” She looked at me with a very powerful message in her eyes (to this day I have never forgotten this look). She simply smiled and said, “Sure son. Go right ahead and pray.” Knowing we were struggling to meet the needs of our family, I simply asked God if He would, “Somehow give me the ability to help my mother and grandmother, to help my brothers and sister, and to help other people.” When I finished this prayer my grandmother asked me one simple question: “Son, do you believe in what you prayed?” I said, “Yes, Ma’am! I believe God will answer my prayer.” She then told me something that will echo in my mind and heart forever. “Keep this prayer in front of you Son, and never let it go.” That was her request.

My heart knew that God would hear my prayers simply because my grandmother constantly reminded us that “God hears our prayer and watches over us.” And I did believe.

Almighty God has answered the prayer I recited that day. And it’s still in front of me today. Praise God.

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10.20.06

A God Sighting

Posted in Uncategorized on October 20th, 2006 at 2:13 pm by Bill Williams

by Bill Williams

 We were saddened to see the moving van in our backyard neighbor’s driveway. We had never been close to her, but, since she had been widowed shortly after we moved into her neighborhood, we’ve tried to keep an eye on her. She was very independent and really never needed anything. Now she’s off to North Carolina to be closer to her children.

There was one occasion in which she was glad we lived in her neighborhood. It was the Saturday before Easter a few years ago. We had been receiving soaking rains for a couple of weeks. The ground was completely saturated, but heavy rains continued to fall. As I stood drinking my morning coffee and looking across our neighbor’s backyard meadow, I noticed that one of her towering pine trees was leaning against the side of one of her storage sheds. If there was any more loosening of its root system, it would come crashing down on her sheds and likely damage most of the expensive equipment they housed. At the least, it would be a big mess to clean up.

My wife called her and let her know what we had noticed. We didn’t learn until later on, that she had already noticed the potential disaster. More about that in a moment. Upon receiving my wife’s call our neighbor started asking what we thought she should do. We both told her that since this was such a potentially dangerous job (the trees are really tall in Delaware), she needed the service of professionals. While I made a call to a Christian man who owns a tree service business, my wife met our neighbor in the backyard to survey the damage.

The tree man was just getting ready to leave town for a family vacation over the Easter break (our children attend the same Christian school). After I explained the circumstances, he said he would come right away and take a look at the situation. He said that he would make some calls en route to see if he could get some of his workers to come in that afternoon (on their day off) and get this lady back in business (or something like that).

Well, he was there in the backyard within thirty minutes. He and our neighbor pointed and gestured for a few minutes and then he was gone. Within a couple of hours he and his crew showed up with their massive boom truck. Birds took to flight and saws started buzzing, within a few short hours they were done.

After we noticed that they were gone my wife called our neighbor just to make sure that all was well with her. She was so grateful for the tree-man that showed up to help her. She said that he hardly charged her anything. The amount that she reported sounded to me like he had charged her just enough to cover his labor expenses.

Then she shared with my wife that she had noticed the leaning tree before she had called earlier. In fact, she said that at the very moment that my wife called she was walking up the stairs from her basement crying out to God for help. She said that she was literally asking out loud to God, “How can I possibly find someone to come remove this tree on Easter weekend?” Then the phone rang. By my way of thinking, that’s a God sighting.

Does anyone else have a similar story to share?

© Bill Williams, October 18, 2006

(Originally posted at the Spiritual Oasis) 

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Listen For The Bell

Posted in Uncategorized on October 20th, 2006 at 11:46 am by Dee O'Neil Andrews

 Just up the road from my home is a field, with two horses in it. From a distance, each looks like every other horse. But if you stop your car, or are walking by, you will notice something quite different.

Looking into the eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind. His owner has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a good home for him. This alone is very unusual.

If nearby and listening, you will hear the sound of a bell. Looking around for the source of the sound, you will see that it comes from the smaller horse in the field. Attached to her halter is a small bell. It lets her blind friend know where she is, so he can follow her.

As you stand and watch these two friends, you’ll see how she is always checking on him, and that he will listen for her bell and then slowly walk to where she is, trusting that she will not lead him astray. When she returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, she stops occasionally and looks back, making sure her friend isn’t too far behind to hear the bell.

Like the owners of these two horses, God does not just throw us away just because we are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges. He watches over us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we are in need.

Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by the little ringing bell of those who God places in our lives. Other times we are the guide horse, helping others find the way.

Good friends are like this. You don’t always see them, but you know they are always there.

Listen for the bell, someone is always listening for yours. You could make a difference in someone’s life and yet maybe not even realize what you’ve done. Don’t pass the opportunity.

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10.16.06

A Pretty Green Dress

Posted in Uncategorized on October 16th, 2006 at 10:02 am by Greg England

by Greg England

I was headed toward Best Buy on Sunday afternoon but first ran by the Credit Union to deposit a check into my daughter’s account. As I was walking away from the night deposit, she was walking toward me. Just the two of us. I first noticed her very pretty and sharp outfit. Shades of green. Nice skirt. White blouse. Dressy coat. Scarf that pulled everything together. I don’t know if she’d been "to church" that morning, but she looked like she had. And she looked like someone who would "go to church" on a Sunday.

As we crossed paths, she never even glanced my way but I noticed her face. Well weathered. Years of wisdom. Grandmother written all over it. I wanted to say something about how pretty she looked in her outfit, but she never so much as glanced up. I’m learning as I approach her age it’s better to watch where your feet are than anything much further ahead, so I didn’t distract her careful pace. I walked on to my car and she walked on the ATM machines.

I decided I really did want to say something to her about her dress, so I timed my exit from the parking lot (allowing two other cars to go ahead of me) so that she would cross in front of my car. As she did, I rolled down the window and said, "Excuse me, Ma’am, but has anyone told you how pretty you look in that dress today?" She looked up at me, somewhat cautious, and said, "Why, no, they haven’t." I said, "Well, someone should have, because you look really pretty today."

Her face exploded into a smile. I drove on … just wanted to say that to her for some reason. It sure made my day to see her smile. Next time she dresses in her "Sunday best," I hope there is someone in her life to tell her just how pretty she looks.

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10.13.06

Nurse Jim & Doctor M

Posted in Uncategorized on October 13th, 2006 at 10:54 am by Dee O'Neil Andrews

When I was in the hospital in ICU two weeks ago with the severe altitude sickness, on the second day I also suffered from a totally unexpected case of "Montezuma’s revenge," as it’s known.  My stomach and intestines were immensely messed up.

I was bedfast, hooked up to tubes and wires galore, which is bad enough in and of itself, but under those circumstances, pretty awful.  As in terribly so to the point that I was completely and totally humiliated by my plight.  It was disgusting to be blunt.  I had to hold back hot stinging tears. 

I needed help and a lot of it.  And my nurse that day was a young man - Jim. 

I do not know what I would have done in his shoes.  I’m not sure I’m as strong or kind a person as he showed himself to be.  Even more, he was compassionate and loving without one word or grimace to the contrary.  

I tried to make light of it as best I could, figuring crying wouldn’t help me or him, but might make things even worse.  He must have thought so, too, because he said, "You know?  You make this much easier because you’re laughing about it all . . . when a lot of people would be crying."

I told him, "I certainly feel like crying and nearly did so while ago, but stopped myself."  He smiled and said he liked that about me.

A short while afterward, the cardiologist, Doctor M, arrived not knowing I was now enscounced on a bedpan.  Jim had gone to see about getting some things from the bed to the laundry.  He’d freshly make the bed and put clean pads down.  All things we don’t normally think of men doing very well, but he did them quite well and in seemingly good humor, no matter what he may have really thought.

The doctor began questioning me about my medical history and I did not have the chance to tell her my plight.  When she found out, she began helping me to get cleaned up once again and Jim rushed in to help, too.  A second time.  With wet, warm, soft wipes that soothed the chafed skin. 

It felt heavenly.  And was . . .

³⁴"Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

³⁷"Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

⁴⁰"The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

Indeed.  Nurse Jim & Doctor M were grace notes in my life that day and I’ll never forget either one of them.  Neither will our Lord. 

P. S.  See Finding Direction: The Wind Vane Chronicles for companion story. 

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10.10.06

Grace Notes’ First Anniversary

Posted in Uncategorized on October 10th, 2006 at 8:37 am by Dee O'Neil Andrews

by Dee Andrews

Grace Notes is one year old today and we are very proud of our growth and progress over the past year. We just moved to this new website called "Grace Notes Ministrie" and Lord willing we will expand and promote Grace Notes living among all of us in our time to come.

We now have 12 regular contributors who are an ecclectic group of Christian men and women who have all - each and every one - been "grace notes" in my life and I’m sure some of yours.

To you all - our readers, commenters, "lurkers" and would be "grace note" people - we salute you for your loyalty and dedication even when we sometimes get too busy trying to be Grace Note people ourselves to have, or take, the time to share our stories with you along the way.

We all promise to try to fulfill our work here better in the coming days, months and years, in whatever circumstances and whatever time we have remaining on this earth. That is our promise.

Thank you for all you bring to our lives even in dropping by to spend some time with us and to hopefully be encouraged by the true life, everyday stories we share from our own walks and journeys through this world.

Do us a big favor and leave a comment telling us what you have liked best about Grace Notes, what it may have meant to you in your life, if it has affected your life in any way and let us know how we can be of greater service to any of you. Please do. Write to me (my email address is over at Finding Direction) and share any "grace note" stories you may have encountered you would like to share and I’ll give you the forum here to do so.

If any of you would like to be regular contributors, let me know that, too, okay?!

Y’all have a good day today, hear?! Dee

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10.09.06

Welcome to Grace Notes’ New Home!

Posted in Uncategorized on October 9th, 2006 at 11:00 am by Dee O'Neil Andrews

Welcome to the new home for Grace Notes. Enjoy.

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Grace Notes Ministries Moves

Posted in Uncategorized on October 9th, 2006 at 10:47 am by Dee O'Neil Andrews

It’s October 9, 2006 - moving day.

Blog moving day, that is.

Grace Notes now has its own "domain name." It’s here at "http://gracenotesministries.org" so click on it and add it to your favorites.

(Caution: Be sure to put the "s" on gracenotes or else you’ll get a violinist’s website! I’m sure she’s a nice lady, but we want you reading Grace Notes as we add new Grace Note stories, which we’re all going to do!)

Thanks!  Y’all come back, you hear?!

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09.06.06

God Bless You, Teachers: Jon’s Story

Posted in Uncategorized on September 6th, 2006 at 6:05 pm by Stoogelover

by Greg England

To honor the many teachers at our church recently, we showed a 20-minute video clip of an event that happened in Moses Lake, Washington, 10 years ago. During math class at the local junior high, a student entered a classroom with a high-powered rifle, shot and killed two students and their teacher, as well as wounding other students. Jon Lane, teaching math in a nearby classroom, heard the noise and went to check it out. He entered a killing field and quickly took cover behind the teacher’s desk … just next to her dead body.

The gunman, by the name of Barry, asked who had come into the room. Mr. Lane identified himself and Barry told him to stand up. Lane said he was too afraid to stand. Barry replied, “Do I have to shoot more students?” At that, Jon stood with his hands in the air. One girl was critically wounded and Jon asked if he could take her out of the room. The gunman allowed him to leave, carrying her in his arms. He could have stayed outside the room and allowed the police to handle the situation, but he returned to the classroom. After all, he said, “I was still the teacher.” He asked for and received permission to release one other student who was frantic due to low blood sugar. Jon returned a second time into this extremely dangerous and unpredictable situation.

In the meantime, the gunman told the rest of the students to line up against the back wall. No doubt, he planned on shooting more of them when Jon re-entered the room. At that point, the gunman wrapped a plastic bag around the end of the barrel and told Jon he was going to place the barrel in Jon’s mouth. Jon protested: “Barry, the gun might go off again.” The gunman was making no more allowances for Mr. Lane. It was at this moment that Jon, a former high school wrestler, used his skill to take the gunman off-guard and pin him against a wall while students rushed to safety and police officers stormed the room. What would have been a much worse tragdy ended with no more deaths because of the bravery of this math teacher.

Ten years later, the town gathered to honor Jon Lane, by presenting a newly refurbished Boy’s and Girl’s Club that Jon had started years before. It was completely rennovated and dedicated in Jon’s honor. The students whose lives he’d saved were present, along with their families. The most tear-filled moment (and there were others) was when the 3 or 4 year-old daughter of the girl who’d been critically wounded came on stage and told Jon, “Thank you for saving my mommy’s life.” If you can imagine that statement from the sweet, innocent voice of a child, then you’re probably experiencing some tear-filled eyes right now.

What made this story even more meaningful to our church is the fact one of our members (a teacher), Tom D., also grew up in Moses Lake where he and Jon Lane were best of friends from childhood through high school and remain close friends to this day.

In accepting the honor given by the town, Jon Lane made the comment that teachers do more than just teach. Being married to a teacher and having many close friends who are teachers (I actually taught in junior college for two years, but I defer to the real teachers on this one), I know for a fact they do more than just teach. As worn out as the phrases have become, they literally touch lives as well as touch the future.

So to all the teachers out there who might read this, may God’s blessings and grace be on you as you enter a new school year! You are loved and respected. Under-appreciated and under-paid!

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