Good Things

by Everett Christian, McAlester, OK
Sunday, October 16, 2011

GOD SPEAKS TO US THROUGH HIS HOLY WORD
15 She (wisdom) is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. 16 Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. - Proverbs 3:15-16(New International Version).

GOD'S PROMISE TO US FROM HIS HOLY WORD
(The Lord said) 26 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws." - Ezekiel 36:26-27(New International Version).

A QUOTE
By God's grace, we can live faithfully in the very places where our faith is under fire. - Dennis King -

THOUGHTS TO LIVE BY
Hide your fears but share your courage. - From Reminisce Magazine - Love always finds a home in the heart of a friend. - From Reminisce Magazine - We will be known forever by the tracks we leave. - American Indian Proverb -

NOTES
As you know you didn't receive Good Things last night. I had an upset stomach and didn't feel up to doing them. I heard from one person who missed them and that was Burlene. I attended church this morning. Our pastor was out of town today. For our service this morning we had a couple of men sing and share their testimonies. They are known as "Bo and Kurt" but I can't remember their last names. Bo plays the violin (fiddle) and Kurt plays the guitar. They sang, played their instruments and testified for almost an hour. It was a very inspirational servce. We didn't have church tonight. I had lunch at home. I took a nap this afternoon with Litle Girl. I sat out with the cats this evening from around 6:00 p.m. to 7:10 p.m. The cats are fine. They all seem to be outside at present as none are around, however they have all been accounted for. Today has been a sunny day with a high temperature of 89 degrees. Low temperature this morning was 61 degrees. At 9:35 p.m. skies are clear with a temperature of 72 degrees. I will see you next time. May God Bless each one who reads the Good Things tonight. If you live alone, I pray God's special Blessings and Presence to comfort you in your lonliness. If you are not alone, enjoy and have blessed fellowship with whomever you are with.
In Christian Love, Everett.

Nan's Calendar

by Nan Frehand, Statesville, NC
October 17th - The Worth of a Man

It is not what he has, nor even what he does, which directly expresses the worth of a man, but what he is. Henry Frederic Amiel

He is a child of God. He is my son. I am honored to be his mother. He is in his final days at home before leaving for USAF Basic Training. He sings in the church choir. He is an Eagle Scout. He is 19 years old. He is the next generation. He is loving. He is my only son. He is honorable. And the list goes on. He is John...... The creative juices are flowing this morning. This message is where my heart is at the moment. Where is your heart right now? On what are you focused? Are your thoughts focused on something worthy or something useless? I'm sure you remember the old commercial "The mind is a terrible thing to waste." Don't waste one precious minute of your life on useless nonsense thinking. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable -- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy -- think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me - put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:8-9
You remain in my thoughts and prayers. Love, Nan

Good Things

by Everett Christian, McAlester, OK
Friday, October 14, 2011

GOD SPEAKS TO US THROUGH HIS HOLY WORD
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” - Luke 2:14(New International Version).

GOD'S PROMISE TO US FROM HIS HOLY WORD
(John the Baptist said) 36 "Whoever believes in the Son (Jesus) has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them." - John 3:36(New International Version).

A QUOTE
We all need to be comforted when hurting. - Dr. Steve Stephens -

THOUGHTS TO REMEMBER
Humility is that elusive thing - the moment you think you have it you've lost it. - From Reminisce Magazine - The greener grass on the other side is just as hard to cut. - From Reminisce Magazine - Today is the first day of the rest of your life. - From the Cooley Newsletter -

NOTES
I had lunch with Charley and Pastor J. T. today. I went to the post office. I went to the cemetery. I took my nap in early afternoon. Little Girl decided to sleep with me this afternoon. Around 4:00 p.m. I went to Petsense store and Walmart. I went out and read with the cats from about 5:40 to 6:50 p.m. It was another nice evening. The cats are fine. Little Girl is on a tv tray. Rascal came by a few minutes ago. Today has been a sunny day with a high temperature of 86 degrees after a low this morning of 44 degrees. At 9:40 p.m. skies are mostly clear with a temperature of 72 degrees.
I will see you next time, In Christian Love, Everett.

Daily Jewel

by Pastor J.T. Carnell, McAlester. OK
Oct. 14, 2011

“What our Hands were Really Made For!”
“The banquet meal is ready to be served: lamb roasted, wine poured out, table set with silver and flowers.” – Proverbs 9:2 (MSG, emphasis mine)

The food is on the table—we’ve filled our plate (unless we use the biblical method and just skip the plate), but for the sake of keeping to the theme let’s assume we have a nice porcelain plate in front of us and it is filled with what we want to eat: meat, vegetables (choose your preference), bread and whatever else sounds good at the moment. We are ready now to dig in…but wait a second…where’s my spoon and fork? I mentioned in the previous that Solomon’s table would have been void of individual dinner plates. We have the same issue regarding forks and spoons…they simply were not used! Even today, there are many in the Middle East that chooses not use utensils for their meals. There is an Arab saying that says: "What does a man want of a spoon when God has given him so many fingers?" According to historians, forks originated with the ancient Greeks, most with two prongs that were used to help cut the meat but were not used as a part of dining until the 7th Century in the Middle East and it would not be until the late 16th early 17th Century that forks would be used in Western Europe. Those in Biblical times, instead of silverware, would simply use only their hands to eat. Pieces of bread would be used to take the place of spoons and forks. With a piece of bread they could scoop up any food that was partially liquid (such as soups, sauces, or gravies). Each torn off piece of bread thus served as a spoon and was eaten along with the food it contains (See Ruth 2:14). Hands were washed before and after each meal. They did not need to wash any silverware, but they did need to wash their hands. The only dishes that were used at mealtime were those in which food was placed. As was mentioned yesterday, each person did not have his own plate. Often there was only one dish for the food, usually a basket or a copper tray placed in the center of the table. Jesus spoke of this dish in Matthew 26:23. Now, this may be a great history lesson but what does it mean for us spiritually speaking? Here’s a thought. When our daughter was younger we did a “mystery” dinner for her and her friends. It consisted of three or four courses—along with the silverware, drinks and napkins. Each person was to draw a number and that number would determine which course they would eat first. For example; if they drew #3 that might be the main course—and just for the sake of a visual it may have been spaghetti or lasagna. They would then draw a number from a different bowl and that number would determine what they would eat their spaghetti with! Let’s say they drew a #1 which would have been a spoon! (Do you see the challenge?) I remember one young man drawing a #2 (which was soup) and then had to eat that with a knife. Thankfully he was creative enough to simply, “drink his soup!” Once they were finished with that then they would draw again until they finished the entire meal. Sometimes…the finished product was not a pretty sight but it was fun watching them learn how to be creative in the process! There are many today that are what I would call, “spoon fed.” They want things easy—accessible—without having to put out any effort. And I am referring to both those in and out of the Church!! A lot of Christians need utensils so-to-speak (“easy solutions”) before they feel adequate enough to do something for the Kingdom. Or what is worse, they would have someone else feed them rather than helping feed those who need far more than they do. And I am not talking exclusively about food, but simply about helping to make the Kingdom stronger and more united. Many tend to complain about not having what they need when in reality, God has given us EVERYTHING we need to live, worship, and work. In his great book on the 23rd Psalm, Rabbi Harold Kushner makes a statement that is truly astounding. He says; “The message of the psalm would seem to be that, if you don’t have something, no matter how much you crave it, you don’t really need it. If you needed it, God would have provided you with it.” (Pg. 30)
God wants and longs to feed our Spirits—but that means making the effort to come to the table, taking the food that is given to us and then feasting on it. Sometimes that means using your own hands to do the work!! If you are complaining that you have to eat spaghetti with a knife—instead of complaining be grateful that you have been given spaghetti in the first place!! I think that is the lesson here today—learning to be thankful for the life we have been given and when things get tough and we don’t have what we want—use what we have been given! You might discover you have more to offer than you ever before considered. Besides…you should never eat chicken or pizza with a fork and knife! That’s what hands are for!
Pastor J. T. Carnell

Good Things

by Everett Christian, McAlester, OK
Thursday, October 13, 2011

GOD SPEAKS TO US THROUGH HIS HOLY WORD
21 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind. 22 Let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy. - Psalm 107:21-22(New International Version). GOD'S PROMISE TO US FROM HIS HOLY WORD
(Jesus said) 33 "But seek first his (God's) kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." - Matthew 6:33(New International Version).

A QUOTE
A crisis doesn't form a person; it only reveals what already lies within a person. - Dennis King -

THOUGHTS TO REMEMBER
Living in the past is lots of fun. Besides, it's cheaper. - From Reminisce Magazine - It's all right to hold a conversation, but let go of it now and then. - From Reminisce Magazine -

NOTES
I had lunch with Charley. I came by the post office. I have been at home the rest of the day. I had my early afternoon nap. I did some filing in my office for a while. I went out to the back yard with the cats at about 5:30 p.m. and stayed out with the cats and read until almost 7:00 p.m. The evening was very nice outside. I have a little time so I will leave a story for those who like them. They are nothing special, just something I put together a few years ago. The cats are fine. Little Girl must be outside now as I don't see her anywhere. Rascal is in the recliner. He has just been on the desk by me wanting some petting. Friendly and Smokey have both been by to see me this evening. Here is a story about cats.

CATS
As most people know, cats like to catch birds. Our cats (I say our cats because I still consider the cats to be jointly owned by Flonnie and me even though she is not here in person but I feel she is here in spirit) don't catch many birds and when I can get the bird I let it go. The birds can usually stay out of the way if they are on their toes. If I keep doing the stories I will do individual stories on some of the cats we have owned. When I lived on the farm we always had cats. We had a female gray and white cat that was always having kittens. The cats never received cat food, only table scraps and raw milk and the little animals and birds that they could catch. We kept the gray and white cat as long as I can remember. A few months after Flonnie and I married someone gave us a solid white female cat. We named her Harriet. We moved to Oklahoma City and took Harriet with us. Harriet presented us with two white kittens. When the kittens were small we were taking a trip to Calvin, Oklahoma, where Flonnie's folks lived. Calvin was about 100 miles from Oklahoma City. We were taking the two white kittens with us. We didn't have cat carriers in those days. Before we left Oklahoma City we stopped to do some business. One of the white kittens got out of the car and we never did catch it. I don't know what eventually happened to the other white kitten. Flonnie said that she remembered that both kittens got out of the car but my memory is not that good. Sometime later I found Harriet dead in the ally behind our house. I figure that dogs might have killed her. I buried her there in the ally. It always hurt us to lose a pet. After our children, Treva, June and Ronnie came along we usually had a cat. I remember the names of some of them. One was named Mocking and one was named Sugarilla. In 1953 we moved from an apartment at Will Rogers Field to a house on southeast 41st street in Oklahoma City. We had one cat at that time and as always we moved our cat with us. It was a new neighborhood with workmen building new houses nearby. After a day or two in our new house our cat disappeared. I figured that she might have been scared with all the building going on nearby. In 1957 we moved to Noble, Oklahoma, about 25 miles south of Oklahoma City. By then we owned another cat. One day I traded for a different automobile. A day or two later the cat disappeared. I think maybe a strange car being there might have confused the cat but that is just my speculation. In 1960 we moved to Clinton, Oklahoma, about 80 miles west of Oklahoma City on Interstate 40. One evening a little girl knocked on the door. She had two little kittens. Flonnie went to the door. The little girl didn't ask if we wanted a kitten, she just asked "Which one do you want?" Flonnie chose a little blue kitten. We called her Baby Cat. We also had an adult cat at that time that would ride in the car with us when we drove out to the country to a dairy to buy milk. I think her name was Happy (my kids can correct me if that is wrong). To our sorrow Baby Cat and Happy both took cat distemper and died. They were not innoculated. The loss of these two cats hurt our family deeply and caused tears to be shed. We later had other cats but I will mention them in a future story. Today has been mostly sunny with a high temperature of 78 degrees. Low temperature for today is the current temperature of 52 degrees.
I will see you next time, In Christian Love, Everett.