THE NEW EWE

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"

Luke 15:4-6

June 8, 2022

LIFE IN THE FOLD

Seventeen years ago, I was preparing for mine and Jon's wedding. I had decided to rent my wedding dress, instead of buying one, to save money, because I didn't have a lot at that time. Plus I didn't want to have to store the dress and figure out what to do with it later. I thought that it was a good idea... until it wasn't!

I found a bridal shop, in the town where Jon and I got married, that rented wedding gowns. I found a dress, like I really wanted, that they could order for me. They took my measurements and assured me that I would have the dress in plenty of time before the wedding. I had gone to another bridal store and tried on a dress similar to the one that I had ordered, and it was exactly what I wanted; but it was too expensive for me to buy, so renting it was seemingly perfect.

Two weeks before the wedding, I got a phone call that they would not be able to get the dress and didn't have time to order another one for me. What?! The lady suggested that I come into the shop and use one that they had in stock. So my sister, Janie, and I took a quick 3-hour trip to see what I could find. They had no dresses in my size! In fact, the only dress that they had that would even be a possibility was 2 sizes too large. But the lady assured me that she could do some alterations to make the dress fit and make it look nice. So I tried the dress on and she pinned and marked the places that needed to be altered.

What I didn't realize was that due to them renting the dress to me, she didn't want to make any cuts on the fabric so that she could take everything back out afterwards. I also didn't know that she wasn't skilled at doing alterations. She told me that she would have the dress ready in a week, so my sister and I went back up the week of my wedding so I could try the dress on. I wanted to cry when I saw the dress! Where she had hemmed the length of the dress up, you could see her stitches on the outside of the dress.... and it wasn't evenly hemmed around the bottom. The dress did fit better, but wasn't great. At that point, I really had no other options and was limited on money, so couldn't run out and buy a dress that fit me well. Therefore, I had to make do with what I had.

My stepmother, June, took the uneven, horrible-looking hem out; then re-hemmed it and pressed it to make it look better. The night before my wedding, my sister, Linda, was doing a few more quick tucks and basting stitches to make the dress fit better.

I'm sure at the wedding, the guests had no idea that this wasn't the dress that I had chosen and that it really didn't fit well and was the wrong size; nor that it had been hemmed twice and there were basting stitches on some of the seams to try and make the dress work for me and look okay.

I can see in our wedding pictures where it really wasn't the best fit in the bodice and neck area... but I also know what I'm looking for and the story behind the dress. Other's probably wouldn't notice, unless it was pointed out. But as the bride, I knew that I was wearing a rented dress that was the wrong size and wasn't the best fit for me.

When we receive Jesus into our lives and become believers, we become the bride of Christ. We are His bride, and He is our bridegroom.

Ephesians 5:25-33 is speaking about how husbands are to love their wives. It says, "Just as Christ loved the church. He gave up His life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God's word. He did this to present her to Himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault." It then speaks about how a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife and the two are united as one. "This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one."

Revelation 19:7-8 says, "Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give honor to Him. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and His bride has prepared herself. She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear. For the fine linen represents the good deeds of God's holy people."

This is one wedding where we have to be wearing the right clothes! We can't show up in a borrowed or rented garment that doesn't belong to us. We can't wear our parent's or grandparent's or a friend's wedding clothes (spiritually), that wasn't made for us, and so doesn't quite fit.

We have to have our own personal relationship with Jesus. We can't be the bride of Christ, just because our parents or a loved one or a close friend believed and had a strong relationship with Him. We can't even be the bride of Christ, just because we attended church -- regularly or once in a while. It doesn't even work that we were a good person and were nice to people, or did good deeds. It's not enough that we believe that there is a God; but we have to make that personal commitment to Him.

It has to be our own choice and decision to follow Jesus and repent of our sins; allowing Him to cleanse us and bring us into a personal bride/Bridegroom spiritual relationship with Him.

I am determined to not miss the wedding feast of the Lamb and wear the fine white linen wedding garment, that has been made specifically for me! I pray that is your desire, also, and that you are preparing yourself to become the bride of Christ. We don't know when this will take place, but we have the promise that it will.

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

Matthew 7 quotes Jesus as saying, "On that day, many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'". There are many people who know of Jesus. They know the power in His Name. They even go around doing good things using that Name.

Lately, we've been seeing political ads like that. They spout off a lot of names, claiming to be like this person or believing like that person. They know the trust that those names evoke, and they use them. But they don't really seem to know the people they name.

It is also like a major fan who adores some celebrity. They might read every article about them, and follow every public thing they do. But they never met. They may never have even said 'Hi' to the celebrity.

True, that seems like reading the Bible. By reading, we get to know who Jesus is, and who the Heavenly Father is. And we can gain a lot of understanding about the Holy Spirit. But we have to actually meet Jesus. We can speak to Him, and He hears us. And we can listen with our hearts to what He wants us to understand. It takes time and effort, but we can build up a dialog, and truly get to know Jesus for ourselves. Reading about Him is a great start, but don't drop it there. Keep listening for what He wants.

ON THE MENEWE:

Beef Stroganoff

Place stew meat in crockpot. If you don't have stew meat, you can use beef sirloin steak or round steak. Either cut into chunks before cooking, or after it's cooked, use 2 forks to break apart into bite-sized pieces. Sprinkle the package of au jus gravy mix over the top; then place a stick of butter on top.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours, or until meat is tender.

After meat is cooked, add a can of cream of mushroom soup and either water or beef broth. (I've used both and either is fine.) Stir to mix.

Cube up the cream cheese and stir in; or add in the sour cream. Add in the mushrooms.

Cook for an additional 20 to 30 minutes.

Add in egg noodles; approximately 2/3 to 3/4 of bag. (I've found that the entire bag is generally too much.)

Stir, so the noodles are covered with the gravy mixture, to prevent them from drying out.

Cook for 15-20 minutes or until the noodles are tender.

Sprinkle grated parmesan over the top when serving, if desired.

You can also add in a splash of Worcestershire when adding in the mushroom soup, if desired.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

I know that I've posted this before, but once again would like to share the story of Jon's proposal to me.

I knew that he had my engagement ring for quite some time, because when we were on the phone he would make comments about looking at it or playing with the light reflecting off the diamond. I had expected him to propose at Christmas, but that didn't happen. I thought perhaps New Years... but once again, no. Maybe Valentines Day..... I didn't know what he was waiting for, before proposing.

On February 5, 2005 my oldest sister and her oldest son brought my dad and stepmom here for a visit. We all met at my sister, Janie's home for lunch. Her daughter, Janee', had joined us. This was Jon's first time meeting Daddy and June. This was actually Janie and Jimmy's anniversary, but he was out of town that year preaching a revival or something along those lines.

We ate lunch and little did I know that Jon was waiting for me to get up to use the bathroom.... or I would have done so earlier! When I finally did, he asked Daddy's permission to marry me. When Daddy said yes, Jon said that he was going to propose to me. Janie asked him, "Now?" And he said yes. Meeting my dad and asking his permission was what Jon had been waiting for all that time.

I walked out of the bathroom and Jon was standing up. As soon as I sat down, he knelt down in front of me and handed me a carving of a sheep that he had made, attached to a wooden base. On the base it said, "Wood Ewe -- Miriam E." I saw the ring box in his hand and reached for it... but Jon made me say "yes" first. I was so excited that I didn't realize that I hadn't answered. This was incredibly special that we got to share that moment with Daddy and some of my other family.

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

Don't shine so others can see you.

Shine so that through you others can see Him. - C.S. Lewis

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org