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

July 10, 2024

LIFE IN THE FOLD

I don't know what it was like around your neighborhood last week, but ours was loud for about four days! We typically have people shooting off fireworks, but it seemed as if there were a lot more this year.... and it lasted for more days. Perhaps there are more younger families, or grandparents who had older grandchildren visiting, who live in the area surrounding us.

From Wednesday through Saturday nights, there were fireworks going off day and night -- but the more colorful ones were being done at night. I think it was just noise-makers during the day.

One evening, Jon and I could hear a lot of fireworks, but had looked out the front and back windows of our home and couldn't tell where the noise was coming from. I finally went outside and saw that it was coming from a house a couple doors down from us.

It would have been easy to complain about the noise -- and Jon and I both commented about it being loud and lots of fireworks -- but I think it bothered our dog more than it did us. He wasn't really all that stressed about it, but just didn't want to go outside by himself to take care of business.

This is my observation, though: We have an elderly widow woman who lives near us, whom we have talked to from time to time. I think she may have a little family who come and check on her, but it doesn't seem as if we see cars there very often. I'm sure she gets very lonely. For about three days, we saw her driveway full of cars. Honestly, my first thought was, "I hope something didn't happen to her!" But the night that we were looking for where the fireworks were coming come, it was from her backyard. We saw here and a couple others sitting in lawn chairs while some young adults (we are assuming grandkids) were shooting off fireworks. They did that for about 3 nights. And whenever I'd look, I'd see this woman and others sitting in lawn chairs watching. They were laughing and talking and enjoying themselves. It made my heart happy to see this woman having so much fun and having joy brought into her life. How could I complain about noise, when it was bringing so much happiness to this woman's life?

There is another home behind us that does a huge fireworks show each year. I think perhaps with July 4^th being on a Thursday, many people had Friday off work, too. I don't know the person who lives in this particular home, but had been told by another neighbor that he had gotten divorced. We had wondered if he would do the fireworks again this year, like he has for the past several years. But for about three days we heard the sound of kids laughing and playing and splashing in the pool. We saw a big blow up bounce house in the backyard and the noise of kids having fun. There were also a few fireworks each night -- but we weren't sure if it was coming from that neighbor or someone across the street from them. On Saturday night we began hearing loud fireworks and could see them through our living room blinds. Jon opened up the blinds so we could watch them; and we went outside and stood for a while, as well.

Whoever does this fireworks show, it seems, has some professional experience. It's as good as any professional display, and we get the pleasure of watching it from our own home. It generally will last for about half an hour. Again, it made my heart happy to hear the sounds of kids laughing and playing and enjoying themselves.

Sometimes what may sound like an inconvenience to us or may not be something that we particularly enjoying hearing, is something that brings great joy and pleasure to others. It brings them together. Perhaps they spend time with one another, which may be something that they normally don't do. For a few hours or perhaps even a few days, they got to forget about hardships or stress or loneliness or disappointments or sadness, and spend time laughing with family and/or friends. Kids, who may be spending their summer in daycare or staying alone while their parents work, are getting to do something purely for the enjoyment of it. A lonely widow may be getting to spend time with grandkids that she doesn't see often; so she sits outside and watches them do fireworks, just for the sake of getting to spend time with them. A divorced parent may be getting to spend quality time with their kids that they've not got to have in a while, due to scheduling and work. Family or friends travel from out of town and get together with loved ones.

With everything negative that we hear about our country and our government, for just a few short days people celebrate our freedom. Flags fly high and fireworks are shot. For those moments of time, people are proud to be Americans and celebrate their country.

Hearing the fireworks, seeing the flags, hearing the laughter of families, seeing pictures of my family and friends getting together and having fun.... it gives me hope!

It's easy to focus on the negative and think that families are falling apart and our country is heading for disaster. But there are still many who are proud to be Americans and thankful to live in the USA. There are many who still cherish their family and friends and love spending time together. There are still many who get together and laugh and enjoy time with each other and are making great memories.

I've heard people say that our nation is no longer a godly nation. While it is true that there are many voices that are loud and spouting off their opinions and who have total disregard for God; there are still many who love the Lord their God with all of their heart, mind, soul and strength. There are many who still believe in the power of prayer. There are many who still love attending church and listening to the Word of God being taught. There are many who are still steadfast in their faith and are not shaken by the world around them.

No one knows what the future holds; but we can know Who holds our future! Let's be the ones who are celebrating and laughing and spending time with those whom we love!! Let's be the ones who are steadfast in our faith and growing in our relationship with God! Enjoy the sound of others enjoying themselves and let their joy make our heart happy. Love God, love others, and laugh more!! God gives each of us just one chance at life on earth; let's make the most of it and thrive!!

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

We do see a lot of sin in our world, and a lot of people who get their voices heard shouting that their sin is okay, and anyone who doesn't like it is "intolerant". But we can still worship God, and love one another. We are still free to love our neighbors and our enemies, and honor Jesus.

We can have Bibles, we can meet safely to hear His word. We are free to pray for one another, for our leaders, and for those who desperately need to know that God loves them.

We can see people around us who are in need, and we can help them. We can lend a hand to neighbors who need help with yard-work, or cleaning up after storms. We can pray for those we can't help in person.

We were happy to get to celebrate our Independence Day. It represents much more now, than simply having a separation from England. It represents our freedom, our rights, and our liberty. It is up to each of us to celebrate those things by keep doing what is right, and holy, and honorable..

ON THE MENEWE:

Napa Cabbage Salad

Chop cabbage; mix with diced onions and chill.

Melt butter in pan; add Ramen Noodles, which have been broken up into small pieces (discard the seasoning packet). Stir until browned. Add in slivered almonds and sunflower seeds. Stir until all are browned. Drain off butter. Add mixture to cabbage and onion and toss together.

Dressing:

Mix all dressing ingredients together well. Let stand at room temperature. Pour over salad just before serving.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

My oldest two nephews are 10 months apart in age.... and they are biological brothers with the same mama and daddy! They have 2 other younger brothers. My sister gave birth to four boys within 5-1/2 years. Growing up, what one didn't think of, the other did; and they were always putting each other up to something. My poor sister! She was raised with only sisters, so raising boys was a whole new ballgame for her. They were sweet boys, preacher's kids.... but they were ornery!! My sister survived and now they are all successful, hard-working adult men.

Here's just a few stories of things they did growing up. One time the oldest two found a metal barrel and the oldest climbed inside so his brother could roll him down a hill. That was all fine and fun... until the barrel went underneath an electric fence! The one inside got quite a jolt!

Another time they were pastoring a church out in the country. My sister was outside in the yard and the boys were all playing. They found a rope and tied their mom up and left her laying on the ground with the garden hose running beside her. As the ground got wet... she did, too. The boys probably got into trouble later, but my sister also has laughed about that and thought it was funny. Another time, my oldest nephew put a rubber band around the sprayer hose beside the sink, so that the nozzle on the size was held in. The next time his mom came into the kitchen and turned the faucet on, she got sprayed with water! They could probably write a book about their escapades growing up!

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

So I give you now a new commandment:

Love each other just as much as I have loved you. John 13:34 TPT

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org