Terribly Interesting

I saw this at the drive thru at Arby's last Tuesday where I was getting a french dip sandwich. Au jus! When I saw it, I knew it was significant. I think the people behind me thought I was a loon because I stuck my camera out the window to take a picture of the drive-thru. Perhaps, my lunacy made them look for what I was photographing. I don't know. All I know is that the rest of my week felt like I got hit in the face with a brick. It was a blessing to be reminded that Jesus was there right from the beginning. God has been so gracious and lavished me with His words. I thought I might share some of them here in case any of you are feeling spiritually hit in the face with a brick. "... guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith." Grace be with you." 1 Timothy 6:20-21 "Humble yourselves before ...

My daughter loves Thomas Nelson's animated and book series Gigi God's Little Princess. In one episode, Gigi goes to a dolphin show. We had the joy of taking Laomai to a dolphin show at Sea World on Saturday. That show was incredibly overcrowded. Denbigh had to stand in the back of the arena holding Laomai so she could see. I could not see and so I sat down right outside. For the thirty minutes I waited, I prayed for the Spirit of God to fall on the people at Sea World that day and the people who worked there. I prayed that Jesus would teach and heal the people. As soon as that show ended, we headed over to Shamu. I cried in Shamu. That's right. I cried. The Spirit of the Lord taught me . First let me tell you that I do not like the "believe" theme and I did not have some big emotional moment of hoping to reach my goals in life. I do not want to put my faith in a dream, a mythical character, or even misplace it in myself. I'll keep all of my faith in Jesus. I ...

What an unusual thing to find on my blog, I know. Last night, Denbigh showed me David's speech on You Tube and I started tearing up. When I grow up, I want to be as classy and God glorifying as he is. Denbigh told me that Michael Jordan's speech was in such stark contrast to this one and it would make me sad to watch it. He was telling me that it is team tradition to give a retiring player a gift. While Michael's team mates did not give him a gift, David's team raised half a million dollars to benefit a charter school he started in San Antonio. What a rare and quiet tribute to a man who loves Jesus. May God bless you, David Robinson. I personally appreciate your example. May God heal and romance you, Michael Jordan.

I hadn't seen my husband in four days. We reunited at Pluckers after I drove from Waco and he drove from Bible Study Fellowship. There is one thing the Cherry family always incorporates into fellowship and celebration . . . spicy food! Denbigh led worship for a Christian school in Houston over the weekend. A special retreat was pulled together due to the loss of a student. A safe place was created for them to grieve and to celebrate. Denbigh had the privilege of visiting with this family. He was amazed at the joy that the parents had and the trust they had in Jesus after losing their daughter. The father told Denbigh, "hug your children all of the time." About eight years ago, I stumbled across a book and I knew the Holy Spirit was telling me to read it. That book was My Heart's Cry by Anne Graham Lotz. I fell into the pages and devoured her words. I saw that she did revivals across the country. They were never anywhere close to me, but I kept praying to be able to g...

Fearless, by Max Lucado, released today! "Why are you frightened? " he asked. " Why are your hearts filled with doubt? " Luke 24:38 The content of this book is obvious. Can we live a life without fear? Max takes you on a journey through the things most people fear every day. Do we matter? Do we disappoint? Will my kids be okay? Can I handle this situation? From violence to not having enough. Can we trust God? He points out how we have taken holy fear, which is a good thing when we apply it to the Lord, and turned it around to fear absolutely everything else. We don't have to. We can have our lives back and not submit ourselves to the authoritarian rulership of fear. Dive in. I have been praying for quite some time to be free from all fear. It can cripple you in ministry. It can cripple you in relationship. As I have cried out to the Lord, God gently reminded me of something I tell my daughter every day. "Look to Jesus. Talk about Jesus. Trust Jesus." G...

Sometimes you read a book at just the right time. It challenged me on every level. How much do I hoard and how much do I give away? This love shouldn't even seem that "crazy" or radical inside the body of Christ, but it is. It does. This book is a must read. It isn't a big emotional exposition. It is a beautiful rendering of the command and the call of Christ on each of us. It gave me a deep desire to forego the unending diatribe of church politics and minister as deeply and effectively as possible to my poor and drug addicted neighbors. It made me want to give. The words of Christ tucked inside its cover cried out to me. We were not created to be lukewarm. I do not want to be any longer. I don't want to spend all of our money on our family and give the least amount possible. I want to be challenged by the example Francis has laid out. May Christ challenge you to think less of yourself and more of the people around you. I am challenged. This is the change we need...

This blog is updated each Tuesday. Recipes and reviews periodically. About five years ago there was an unsung film made. The premise was simple. What would happen if all of the Hispanic people disappeared from the state of California? The point was to show how needed the Hispanic people were. I am not sure if it was meant to be comical, but it turned out to be. All the Hispanic people disappeared and the white people had no idea how to function. (I know this is controversial. Stick with me.) There were no nannies to raise their kids or migrant workers to grow their crops. No one even wanted the jobs made available because the pay was too low. I am not sure if it got the impact the film makers desired. I only know that it made me think. What if all the Christians disappeared? Are we genuinely providing a service that would be missed by those around us? Would the people on your street be effected? I thought about all the nice programs we have at church. If we only serve punch and encou...