In many respects 2019 was one of, if not the
most confusing year of my life. When
Piper was alive, I was always pretty focused, goal orientated, enjoyed dreaming
about our future and knew what I needed to do and did it… especially
when I was caring for her 24/7, over the last eight years of her earthly walk. After her passing though, I found myself
confused and lacking in much of the personal confidence and focus that had been
driving me. Now as the year is coming to
its end, I am finding some of that confidence, focus and peace returning to me. I am beginning to see 2020 as a literal year
of new beginnings as I have suddenly found myself walking a path in this life
that I neither expected, planned or have walked before.
Now I am settled here in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. I’m living
in a new house that I own and am getting ready to see what each day of this new
season has for me to experience. In some
ways its very daunting, but in others it’s quite exciting… which in itself
seems to be my biggest problem right now! Throughout this last year I have found myself
repeatedly bouncing from one opposite emotion to the other! Excited about what’s ahead one moment and
then finding myself concerned and somewhat empty and lost when I consider existence
without my life-long, spunky wife at my side.
Going back in thought, previous to 2019, it’s easy to see
that the last two decades were a time of drastic change for Piper and I and
our family. Some good and some not too
positive! I was laid off in 2002 from my
twenty-year tenure with Hewlett Packard and their spin-off company Agilent Technologies
when the electronics industry in the United States suddenly crashed and burned. Following that, our two older children got
married and I received the unmistakable call to attend Bible School while we were attending a conference at Rhema in Oklahoma in 2003. Our two younger children would follow suite
in meeting and marrying the love of their lives (at Bible School) when they later attended after I did.
We moved to Oklahoma in 2006 to go to school with the
dream of coming back to California and pastoring our own church. That desire came to a screeching halt when
Piper began demonstrating increasing physical symptoms of something a lot worse
than what was thought to simply be the passing effects of menopause. Once we began
her medical investigations and tests, we entered a course of life that would become
totally consuming for the next eleven years.
After graduating and with confusing results from the
various brain scans and other multitude of tests that Piper had in Oklahoma, we
decided it best to return home to our former life in California. But as I’ve chronicled in the literally
hundreds of blog posts that I’ve written since 2010… things didn’t quite
turn out as planned. The former life
we had wasn’t there when we returned! Almost everything we had come to depend on in
our past was no longer in operation. But
we bounced back. We slowly learned
who we could depend on (or not) and developed a new network of family
and friends that we could trust and be with in our time of desperate need.
Then in 2014, after months of prayer, we (read that “I”)
packed up our belongings and moved us to North Carolina to be closer to three of our
four children and their families. Plus,
it afforded us the opportunity to purchase the home of our dreams in the
country with about an acre of property. Those five years on the East Coast were sweet,
had their moments of joy, were filled with lots of miracles, but was also the
most trying as well as physically and emotionally straining and draining time
that I’d ever experienced in my life. At
the end of 2018, we lost the physical battle for Piper’s life and I found
myself in an empty house, without the most important, wonderful and cherished
person that I had ever known.
… And then 2019 began to appear on the horizon! Following a few months of feeling like an
absolute zombie, I flew to Oklahoma to spend Christmas with most of our kids
who now lived there. After my return, I threw myself into the task of preparing our dream home for sale, sold
it and then moved myself and the dog to Oklahoma… where I am now.
I am truly hoping and believing that this is the last move
for me. That this is home! I have a ton of plans for upgrades on the
house, have returned to my adult Christian roots at church at Rhema, get to see
our girls and their families in Broken Arrow on a regular basis and for the
first time in who knows how long… live in the same time zone as our boys who reside
in Oklahoma City and Mount Juliet, Tennessee!
As 2019 comes to a close and the new decade begins, I am
beginning to feel the gears of expectancy turning on the inside of me. I sense dreams formulating deep within my
heart and even though it may seem daunting… I feel that warm and familiar
trust in the truth of God and His word returning to my soul.
God reminded me the other morning of Whom I
need to be listening to as I begin this new adventure. While the warm water beat down on my back (I
love the shower head and amount of water pressure this house has!) I heard that all familiar “still small
voice” on the inside of me say, "Have I not commanded you Jim? Be
strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for I, the LORD your God am
with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9 NASB) “I will never neglect you or abandon you.”
(Joshua1:5 God’s Word ©)
So, need I say anymore?
I have my marching orders… pretty much the same ones He gave me back
in 1975 soon after Piper and I got married.
Sure, my life has dramatically changed… but He is still the same as He
was in every century that you and I have been alive… and many, many more
before that!
In 2020, trust in Him, seek His directions and then follow
what He says! Simple right?
I’m expecting an exciting new decade of life… How about
you?
I was listening to the DJ on the local Christian radio
station this morning when he started talking excitedly about the coming of the new
decade. He called it a time of
new starts and new life. I’m not sure
why, but his comments also got me excited!
The thought of it being the beginning of a whole new decade
seemed to make it even more interesting to me.
Over the last few weeks I have been increasingly sensing
that God has some special plans for me beginning in 2020. And while I firmly believe that He had
nothing to do with Piper’s early exit from this world, I firmly believe that He
knows my future and plans to be very much involved in it!
I am also beginning to have some hints about how He is
thinking about doing it. For example,
I recently realized through a series of happenings… coincidences… some
may say, that I need to return to my spiritual roots at Rhema in the new year. It dawned on me that the very foundation of
Piper’s and my adult spiritual and resulting physical lives began when we
connected to that ministry way back in the mid-1970’s.
As I’ve stated before, the practical teaching of faith
literally turned us on our ears! It
ignited a fire deep inside of us that was fanned to white hot flames throughout
the next 40 some years. It was the
understanding and reliance on the Word of God that got us through the roughest
as well as the most blessed times in our lives.
It is that same unmoving faith in God’s Word that got me through the
last years of Piper’s life when her lovely self was slowly stolen from me, our
family… and the rest of the world!
And now… as I enter into a totally new adventure in life
without her… I need that same foundation continually building inside me to
freely move on to fulfill whatever it is that He has for me to do for Him. Truth-be-known, I most likely need it
more than I ever did before! Many things
are and will be different for me in the coming days, months and years… but
my life’s foundation… the strong foundation of my faith… will stay the
same!
I also burst out laughing earlier today, when that same DJ
told how he inadvertently left his Bible at church after the recent Christmas Eve service. He related how he received
a call from his Pastor yesterday telling him that he had found the Bible and
had it in safe keeping. Then he stated
how the Pastor nonchalantly mentioned how he had gone through the book and
highlighted several unrelated verses just so that when the DJ had passed, that
his kids would have a good laugh as they looked through the book and tried to
figure out the things that he was studying!
That caused me to giggle because I many times, think the
same thing when I underline or write notes in my favorite Bibles (I have
well over 50 translations!). That
thought has been magnified when I go through Piper’s Bibles and look at her
notations and highlights. It just makes
me feel closer to her as I try to imagine where she was and what she was thinking
when she made them.
When I finally got to concentrating on my Bible Study and
not the antics of the radio DJ this morning, I honed in on 2 Peter 3:12-13
where Peter wrote about the last of the Last Days events on this earth. He said, “Daily expect the Day of God,
eager for its arrival. The galaxies will burn up and the elements melt down
that day— but we'll hardly notice. We'll be looking the other
way, ready for the promised new heavens and the promised new earth, all
landscaped with righteousness.” (The Message)
That statement got me to thinking about the way faith is
supposed to work in us Believers. We are
to be more focused on the results of what God promises than in the physical
circumstances that surround us at any given time. (Read through the so-called
“Roll Call of Faith” in Hebrews 11)
That’s the lifestyle of Piper’s and my faith that got me/us through
those last eight years of her life. I wouldn’t
and couldn’t afford to get lost in what I saw happening right
before me with Piper’s mind and body, nor with the looks and/or words of unbelief,
fear and utter defeat emanating from those I came into contact with,
in person or on the phone on a daily basis!
Peter tells us that in the last of the Last Days, while
the world is panicking over the terror that’s physically going on around them…
that the faith-filled Christians will “hardly notice!” because the focus
of their faith is on God and His promises to them. We’ll all be excitedly preparing for what’s
next according to His Biblical plans for us!
Pretty cool wouldn’t you say!
So, the way we live our lives today… is the way we’ll live
our lives when the end of life as we know it today, comes to its God planned
conclusion. That’s why I plan to stick
to my roots!
What roots do you have that keep you grounded when the
terrors of life attempt to encroach on your lives? Something to think about as this decade comes
to a close and a new one begins… wouldn’t you say?
Have a great New Year’s weekend, and as you do, think about
this post and spend some time personally talking with our Heavenly Father
concerning the wonderful new adventures that await you ahead in 2020.
As I sit at the kitchen table looking out upon the fairway
of the golf course outside my window, I find myself lost in memories of
Christmas’ past. Sounds of “It’s
Beginning to Look Alot Like Christmas♫” drift from the stereo speakers
throughout the house and I can’t help but think of the endless pictures I have
swirling around my mind, beginning with those very first presents that Piper
and I opened up in the living room of my parent’s house way back in 1970, to
the many Christmas Eve’s we spent wrapping presents late into the evening for
our children’s glee the next morning.
Then there were the countless Christmas mornings where we sat around the tree
while the kids tore open their gifts as Piper looked on with her get-up-quick
tussled hair, sleepy eyes but yet contented look of peace and joy on her face… dressed
in the fluffy white bathrobe I gave her in the early 1980’s.
I was so exited when I purchased that bathrobe for
her. It was a big deal for me at the
time as I went to Macy’s to get her what I hoped was the best robe around. I went on my evening lunch break from my
supervisor’s job at Hewlett Packard and when I returned to my desk my whole
crew was waiting to see what I had gotten her!
When I opened the box, they began to prod one young lady
who worked with us to model it because she was similar in stature to Piper… You
have to understand that this work team was like an extended family to us. They all knew Piper and we even had them over
to our house for an authentic Italian Bagna Cauda fondue type dinner one
weekend… We all laughed so hard that evening as she paraded around the
floor, turning and posing like a runway model!
It is interesting to note, that many years later, her husband became
our youngest son’s basketball coach at the Santa Rosa Christian School… just
coincidence ya think???
Earlier this morning as I made the bed, I glanced up at the
grouping of photos of Piper that I had recently attached to the wall and
couldn’t help but stop and stare at one photo in particular, where she is leaning
against the fence post in front of our room at the Fort Ross Lodge sometime in
the late 1990’s. She was wearing one of
her skirt/shorts outfits that I loved to see her in as it showed off her pretty
legs and she just had a sweet, what I would call “Jimmy” smile on her
face… that was a smile just for me… that said “This a good pose,
isn’t it!”
I began to pray at that moment and commit this Christmas to
the Lord. I prayed that the Lord would
help me through this second Christmas without her and help to fill the huge
caverns that were left open in me when she went home to Jesus. I prayed about all the wonderful things that
she did for me as well as what she meant to me.
I also thought about all the monstrously big miracles that the Lord did
for us through those 48 years together… and then I immediately thought that
since He hasn’t changed, that I can expect those same kinds of miraculous
workings done in our past… in my future as well!
As far as I know, Philippians 4:19 where Paul wrote that, “my
God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ
Jesus” (KJV) can still work for me today, tomorrow and forever.
I closed my morning Bible study with I Peter 5:6-7 where
Peter encouraged his readers saying: “So be content with who you are, and
don't put on airs. God's strong hand is on you; he'll promote you at the right
time. Live carefree before God; (for) he is most careful with (& for)
you.” (The Message)
So… that’s my Christmas 2019 prayer for you and me. That we can be at peace and live with
consistent joy as we trust HIM for our every need, be content with who
we are in HIM and thereby live a carefree life… without worry or fear…
as we trust in HIS ability and resources to care for us.
Have a blessed Christmas Eve, Eve, and as you do, take a
moment or two to thank the Lord for His goodness and grace shown toward you
this last year and then look with anticipation of His grace to come in the New
Year!
I had originally planned to only do what was minimally
necessary to live comfortably in my new house until after I painted some walls
and then had new carpet installed. So,
like I mentioned in the last blog post, I only moved what I had with me in my
small apartment where we lived for about six months before moving here. That meant that the majority of my life’s
belongings… including Piper’s piano are still in storage.
But after being in the new place for a week, I realized
that the house just looks too sterile and empty! It is not a good feel… especially when I am
still dealing with the absence of Piper during the Holidays. Therefore, I decided while on one of Fiver’s
and my daily walks, that I was going to take dominion over the inside of my
house! The verse of scripture found in
Genesis 1:26 popped into my head during that brisk adventure strolling along
the golf course, where God told Adam and Eve to take “dominion over the fish
of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the
earth…” (KJV)
I decided… “Why not?” I can decorate with what I have on hand right
now and can always change it later… right? So, for the last few days I have been hanging
pictures, favorite posters and even a painting or two around the open kitchen
and living areas, my bedroom and even in the guest bath. You wouldn’t think it would make a big
difference… BUT IT SURE DOES!
Suddenly I feel like we are in our own special home and not just
residing in someone’s house!
I started studying in the New Testament book of I Peter
this morning and had barely gotten through the first few verses when one
scripture jumped off the page to me! I
could only smile and audibly utter “Wow!” as I read I Peter 1:7 where
Peter wrote to his readers concerning the high value of “genuine faith”
declaring, “When Jesus wraps this all up, it's your faith, not your gold,
that God will have on display as evidence of his victory.” (MSG)
That one thought brought back a flood of memories as it
perfectly summarized the focus of the lifestyle that Piper and I sought to
live… right up to her last breath.
It was a decision that came with countless blessings, some tough times and a
fair amount of friction from those who disagreed with our chosen
direction. As I listened to parts of
Piper’s sermon from the early 2000’s that she entitled “The High Places,”
I realized that her faith was not only the most important thing in her life,
but that she literally lived, breathed and talked the Word on a regular
basis. It's just who she was… who WE
were.
And at the end of her time on this earth as I continued to
see the sparkle of His joy in her eyes up until she departed for heaven… I
knew that we had chosen right. I
could visibly see the “evidence of his victory!” in our bedroom on that
day, at approximately 5:30 in the morning on September 2, 2018.
So, anyone would be hard pressed to try and change the way that
I will continue to live my life during the final days of 2019 and throughout
2020. How about you? How important is your faith in God and His
Word? I know that I push that point a
lot… but it is a point that has proven itself to be true over and over
and over for me… again, again and again! So why change now?
Have a terrific weekend, and as you do, take a moment or
two to thank the Lord for His goodness toward you over the last year and then say
with me… “I am expecting to continue to see the goodness of the Lord in
2020… as I keep my faith solidly in Him and His Word!”
“Twas the week before Christmas when all
through the house,
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with
care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be
there…”
I do have to admit that it is pretty quiet around my neighborhood,
both night and day. Although I imagine
that come summer vacation and he warmer weather that accompanies it, that
things will liven up a bit! Being as we
live in the cul-de-sac at the end of the block that terminates in the golf
course next door, we don’ get a lot of traffic either.
The only creatures that tend to stir during the day is those
in my back-neighbor’s yard. They have a
few dogs that like to bark anytime someone walks by the trail outside their
see-through fence or the golfers who stop their carts to tap their balls into
the nearest hole.
As far as Christmas decorations go… I am
doing better than last year as I have at least put up my small tree that never
saw the light last year. I just wasn’t
in the mood back then with Piper’s recent passing a few months before the
Holidays. But this year is
different. Somewhat worse in the
emotions department than last year as the full understanding of what happened has settled in over the last fifteen months, but stronger in the burgeoning
desire to move on to the new things that God has in store for me.
The tree was actually the only thing from our Christmas
boxes that was easily accessible in my storage locker. I only moved the furniture and other supplies
I had in the apartment over to the new house due to the fact that I plan to put in new carpet
after the Holidays and don’t want to deal with moving things out of the rooms.
So, I have a tree and no ornaments or other
decorations! But that wouldn’t do, so I
went off to my new Super Walmart only a mile or two away from my place and
bought a mixed box of ornaments and a couple of special ones that I thought
would be special to my Granddaughter.
Then when I got home, I decorated the tree, flipped on the light and
discovered that the very top no longer lights up! Therefore, a small set of lights is on my
shopping list for later today!
I keep sensing in prayer, that 2020 is going to be a
breakout year for me. I also believe
that it is important to God, as to how I finish off the last few weeks of
2019. I’ve already received directions
concerning some changes that I need to make at the beginning of the new year,
with the charge to jump into those changes 100% with gusto, rest, peace,
praise… and lots of confidence!
That last part… the part of “with confidence” is the
one that tends to alarm me though. To
bluntly put it, I just spent the last 48 years experiencing life with my one
special, loving, encouraging and boldly confident wife at my side. We were a strong team and tended to do most
things in step, hand in hand and in total agreement in our stands of
faith! Now… well now it’s just me…
although I still clearly hear her voice of encouragement and love in my head!
In fact, some of the changes I mentioned above were
confirmed when I listened to a teaching tape of hers from twenty years ago, or
as I looked at pictures of her standing (with a big smile on her face)
in front of some local landmarks when we originally lived here from 2006-2009.
But if I learned anything over those wonderful 48 years
with Piper, it was to always follow through and “DO” whatever it
is that we felt assured the Lord instructed us to “DO” while
seeking His will in prayer. I can look
back over the years and vividly see that when we did “DO” what He
said, that we were blessed beyond measure… maybe not immediately, but almost
always eventually!
The wise Pastor of the church in Jerusalem tells us in
James 4:17 that, “…if you know the right thing to do and don't do it, that,
for you, is evil.” (The Message) As
Piper and I stepped out to “DO” many of the things that we felt
led of the Lord to “DO”, like to move all the way to Oklahoma to
attend Bible School, and then when we returned home and her symptoms
accelerated, to quit my secular job in order for me to personally care for her
24/7, we simply knew it was the right thing to “DO” and better
yet… that we HAD to “DO” it in order to stay in
God’s perfect plan for our particular situation.
At the time, I never thought that disobeying Him would be
considered “evil,” but I knew that it would be wrong for us to not
be obedient. The bottom line for Piper
and I was that it was much more important for us to follow what
we believed to be God’s directions than the few who vehemently came against us,
thinking that we’d totally lost our marbles!
And in the end, we were blessed tremendously by following
His plans. As a direct result of those
leadings, we were able to participate in various benefits programs, receive the
best medical care available for her from experts in San Francisco and be financially
able to not only pay for her out of pocket medical expenses (well over $60,000)
but all we needed to live comfortably as well.
So, I guess that this is my week before we celebrate the
birth of Christ message to you today!
That in the midst of all the activity of the season, that you don’t forget
to seek Him, get His plan and then simply said… follow
through and “DO” it!
I may have some reservations about my future, but I have NO
DOUBTS and NO RESERVATIONS about how
important and successful it is to “DO” what He says to “DO!”
It’s that thought and the personal experience of that truth that gives
me the confidence to expect God’s best throughout the rest of 2019 and into the
new adventures in 2020!
So… Who’s with me today?
Well, you guessed it… this
is the first official blog post from my new home in northeast Broken Arrow, OK! The Five and I were awoken early this morning
around 4:45 by a rather loud peal of thunder followed by a deluge of frozen
rain. We weren’t expecting the thunder
so the boom took both of us by surprise.
When out on the lawn there arose such a
clatter,
That I sprang from the bed to see what was the
matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.
Being as we’ve barely been in the house a week, I haven’t
yet familiarized myself with the unique sounds of the home and neighborhood and
to be perfectly honest… my first thought was that the water heater blew up! So, there I am, with the dog in tow (brave
of him to stay tucked behind me…right?) running into the dark kitchen,
shirtless in my pajama bottoms and flinging open the garage door! Smart move eh? Like what was I gonna do if I found what I
was thinking in my half-dazed, sleepy mind?
By the time I opened the door from the kitchen to the
garage, some more thunder sounded and I finally figured out what was
happening! I closed the door and took a
quick peek out the kitchen window out to the front yard and didn’t observe,
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Giving the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
in fact it was quite dark and overcast outside.
And thank God that to my wondering eyes there didn’t
appear,
A miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer… I
think that I might have lost it if I saw anything like that!
So, the big brave Fiver and I plopped back into bed… me
in mine and him on his on the floor and twisted and turned for another hour
or so. When I took him out back at 7:00
the ground was wet and there were ice pebbles lining the wooden framing on the
fence. When we went out for a walk a few
hours later, the temperature was still sitting at 30 degrees with 19 mph winds
from the north. That equated to a wind
chill of 19 degrees. By the time we got back from our walk, I thought my face had frozen!
And that my dear readers is the state of the union or of
the neighborhood from my new neck of the woods! I spent a good amount of time yesterday
praying for the plans and the purposes of those plans that the good Lord has
for me to passionately pursue in the final weeks of this year and throughout
what I firmly believe to be a brand-new frontier of faith for me in 2020.
I was reading in James 2:23 this morning that, “The full
meaning of ‘believe’ in the Scripture sentence, ‘Abraham believed God
and was set right with God," includes his action. It's that
mesh of believing and acting that got Abraham named ‘God's friend.’" (The
Message) I couldn’t help but to stop and
nod my head in agreement to that statement.
I strongly sense that this new year is going to include a lot of new and
at times… out-of-my-normal-comfort-zone actions on my behalf, if I am to
accomplish the plans that God has for me in this new land and new life without
Piper at my side!
But hey… that’s the way Piper and I
lived our life in the past, so there’s no reason to stop now right? What’s that saying… “If it ain’t broke don’t
fix it!” I keep thinking about and confirming
in the Word, the need to stick to my unique Christian roots… and that’s exactly
what I aim to do!
I hope everyone who reads this is joyfully getting into the
Christmas spirit and is able to pass HIS joy onto someone else as you
endeavor to navigate the hustle and bustle all around you! Then, as you fly out the door and jump in the
car to grab that last-minute present, someone might just hear you say as you
drive away:
HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A
GOOD-NIGHT!
One last thought: What are you expecting this
Christmas and New Year?
I spent the latter part of last week and most of this week
so far, preparing for my upcoming move in a couple of days. Fortunately, I do not have a lot to pack
since I’ve been kind of living in a minimal mode since I moved from North
Carolina almost six months ago. As it
turns out, I needed pretty much that whole six months to make this week’s
move. The house and the previous owner’s
Reverse Mortgage situation sure threw a wrench into my plans to slowly prepare
the new house for my eventual occupancy.
Now the plan is to only move the things in my apartment and then paint and
get the new carpets before unloading the storage bin where most of my stuff
resides! But that’s okay, as it will
give me the time to create the look I desire while actually living in my new
home.
But that doesn’t mean that repacking the relatively few
things in my apartment didn’t bring to light more than just a few poignant and
sometimes painful memories of Piper’s and my past. Late yesterday afternoon I sat on the floor
in front of our entertainment cabinet, opened the bottom doors and sighed as I
looked over our collection of mostly Christian record albums that we amassed during our dating and early marriage days… before eight tracks, cassettes
and CD’s came into existence!
As I began to thumb through the large collection, my heart
began to ache as I pulled out a couple of albums that had “Piper Canevari”
written on the top right corner. They were
from her personal stash that she had begun to collect when we delved into the
burgeoning contemporary Christian Rock scene during our college years. Just looking at the covers of those albums
and the many others that we had purchased and almost wore out during the early
to mid-seventies, brought back a flood of happy times listening to music at
each of our homes, going to concerts around town and attending some of the
regular concerts of new and upcoming Christian bands at a ministry in the
Sacramento, California area called “Warehouse Ministries.” Ah… those were some especially good times!
Piper always had such a strong spirit of life about her
that seemed to infect everything and everyone around her. While sitting on the floor packing the
albums, I couldn’t help to think of the first dance we attended during the
first week or two of our Senior year in high school. I guess you could say that this was our first
official date! We planned on meeting at
the activity in the school cafeteria and then spending the rest night at the dance together.
I got to the dance before Piper and danced one number with a mutual friend
of ours before Piper arrived. My dance
partner and I stood on the side of the dance floor when the song ended and were
talking about something when she looked out into the crowd and said that she’d
better go now because Piper was here.
It was then and there that I fell hopelessly in love with
my future bride and lifelong companion. As Piper walked across the dance floor, I
couldn’t help but notice how radiant she looked and something just clicked
inside of me… and I knew, as a young seventeen-year-old teenager, that I
would never have eyes for another women again!
The joy and the life that shined about her was unmistakable…
and it never left. Even when her lovely
exterior features became contorted with the growing onslaught of the Alzheimer’s,
if you looked closely… you could still see the brightness of that joy,
inner peace and life in her eyes.
Those memories and many more coursed through me yesterday
with almost every box, picture or record album that I packed. And they got me to thinking about how
important it is, to always look for the positive, the joy and the life in
everyone we interact with throughout each and every day. It caused me to recall all the wonderful
people that came into our lives to support us through the last eight years of
Piper’s life and it made me cry over the few who seemed to fall into a trap of
deception when it came to the lifestyle of faith and joy that Piper and I
always strived to live. It deeply affected
me to see the absence of hope, faith and joy in their lives when it came to
Piper’s situation.
Revelation 12:9 calls the enemy of our souls, the devil, “the
deceiver of the whole world…” (KJV)
Every time I turn on the news, I see the deception of the enemy running rampant
in the world. I see very intelligent and
most likely good people falling for his tricks and believing his lies and therefore missing out on the hope and joy that Jesus gives to us… especially during this
special Holiday Season.
I would encourage each of you this season, to stay alert to
the deceptions that the enemy puts out.
To go the extra mile to love those among your family and friends. To look past what your physical senses are
telling you, and to look deep into the eyes of those you interact with on a
daily basis. Look for the good, spread
the Good News and rejoice in the truth of God and His Word.
Have a blessed week, and as you do, say with me… “I am
expecting to look for and spread the joy and life of the Good News today!”
