Saturday, January 23, 2016

Saturday and Another Breakfast Out

I will pick up Bob at 7:20 this morning to go to Sirloin Stockade for breakfast.

I slept really well last night. Staying up later helps me to sleep better. Missy slept part of the night in the recliner. Once I woke up to go to the bathroom and realized she was not on the bed. I took my little flashlight and went looking for her. She was in the recliner. So I went back to bed and left her there. In a little while, she came back to bed. We slept until after 5:00.

It 25 degrees this morning so I turned the furnace up to be comfortable. It's supposed to get up to 45 degrees today.

I will fix the leftover meatloaf for our lunch today and we will have more baked potatoes and veggies. Bob will bring another salad.  I have brownies for dessert with a little bit of butter brickle ice cream. I want to get that carton out of the freezer. Leslie is supposed to bring me ground beef tomorrow at church.

I really need to get to the market today. We will also have cakes to bake and ice on Monday and take to Independence on Tuesday. I also need eggs. 

Besides Bobby's health problems, Laura, from church, contacted me Thursday about Mike, her husband. He was in Joplin at Freeman Heart Hospital and was going to have bypass surgery on Friday. I sent out an e-mail to the congregation for prayers. His surgery was yesterday and I heard from Laura again this morning, Mike's surgery went well and he was in CCU.  He had four bypasses that had been 90% closed. He is doing well. Later in the week I want to get over to Joplin to see him.  As soon as Laura says it's o.k. I will see if Bob wants to go with me.

More later.....By the way, isn't this the cutest face ever? This is a Corgi that needs a home. How about one of you?


More later again....

We had a good filling breakfast and will eat lunch late. I took Bob home afterward. I guess I will stay in until afternoon when it warms up to 45.  I still have my book to read.

More even later....

This is my son and daughter-in-law's new home going up. They now have the roof on it.

 
 Isn't that going to be lovely?

I called Bob and took him to Walmart with me before lunch.   Then we came home and I finished my book. It was "An Innocent Man" by John Grisham. It was his one non fiction book about Ada, Oklahoma and a terrible injustice that occurred there in the 1990's.  A young man was wrongly convicted of a murder and it took 12 years and an Innocence Project hearing to get him exonerated and released. A very interesting book!

Bob decided not to get out in the cold again so I took my bath at 6:00 and Missy and I sat in the recliner all evening and watched  "Forensic Files" and "48 Hours".  I fell asleep halfway through the evening and finally just went to bed at 9:00.

Friday, January 22, 2016

Friday and a Quiet Day

This should be a quiet day. Yesterday was very busy. I do need to go to the market today. I have a small list.

The meeting was just starting last night and I texted Bobby and Karan because I saw they were late. Everyone else was here, She texted me back that they were in the ER. Bobby and she were at Braums for dinner and he had a seizure. Everyone there tried to help them. Isn't that wonderful? That's a small town for you! Anyhow Marilyn and Judy went to the ER to be with them. The rest of us just visited. They stayed a couple of hours and just got back around 9:00.

Patrick had helped Karan get Bobby into the house after he was released from the ER.  He was still nauseated. He has medication for that from Hospice. Bobby was diagnosed the first week in November and given about 90 days to live then. So it will be a miracle if he recovers. But it could happen. I believe our minds have a great deal to do with our health and Bobby has a great attitude.  Just think! President Carter was diagnosed with 4th stage cancer and he has been declared cancer free.

Then I went ahead and showed the video because Howard wanted Patrick, their son, to see it.  Afterward I served the brownies and the butter brickle ice cream for them. Everyone was very helpful. We only had eight here so it was easier. While I took Joyce and Gary home afterward, Bob pitched in and put away the folding chairs and stayed with Missy. When I got back he was on the internet with his notebook checking his bank account and reading my blog.  After he left, I took my bath and Missy and I went right to bed.

It's seven degrees this morning. I had my oatmeal and coffee. I'm out of orange juice and almost out of milk.  So I will need to go to the market for sure. Today we will have the chili I made yesterday for lunch.

It is so cold. I may just stay in and wait until afternoon to go to the market. I have a new book downloaded on my Kindle.

More later...

Karan called and needed to go to the pharmacy to fill a script for Bobby this morning so I went over there and stayed with him for an hour or so while she also went to the market.  The last 15 minutes, he slept.

Then I picked up Bob and we went to Utopia for coffee and while there he told me his sister Betty had called and one of his nieces had had a massive stroke. He is trying to find which hospital she is in.   I took him to CRMC but she was not there. She might be in Bartlesville or even Tulsa. He will do some calling around to find out where she is.

We will have a later lunch since we went to Utopia. And he will come over and do laundry.

More later...

We had our lunch and I gave Bob some of the leftover chili and then took the rest over to Karan and Bobby. I also took them some of the meatloaf and some potatoes for today. 

I read all afternoon after Bob finished his laundry and went back to his apartment and finally I realized it was nearly 5:00 and time for Missy's treats and dinner. I fed her and about that time Bob came back over to watch Brooks and Shields with me on PBS. After he left at 7:00, I took my bath and watched Dateline on TV until 10:00. Then Missy and I went to bed.

Thursday, January 21, 2016

Sunday's Sermon



Embrace Christ’s Mission
January 24th 2016

I’d like to share with you from Luke 4: 14-21

The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry
14 Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. 15 He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.
The Rejection of Jesus at Nazareth
16 When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, 17 and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
    because he has anointed me
        to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
    and recovery of sight to the blind,
        to let the oppressed go free,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
20 And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. 

The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”  This astounded them!

Let us look at the message of this scripture  a little closer.

Last week, from the Gospel of John, the wedding at Cana was cited as the first of seven signs the community of John used to decide that Jesus was divine. 

This week, from the Gospel of Luke, we hear an announcement about Jesus’ public ministry.

This passage follows Jesus’ baptism and his temptation in the wilderness. It was after those two key life events that Jesus returned to Galilee “filled with the power of the Spirit” (v. 14). Though the passage began with news of his expected return and praise from those he was teaching in nearby synagogues, the reading is followed by an attempt to throw him off a cliff!
What do you suppose that was all about? Our focus this morning is verses 14–21, but the context of the verses is important.

Jesus' claim that "today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing" placed both listeners and readers in the position of having to make a choice. No fence-sitting was possible. Jesus' teaching was not some ethical instruction detached from his person. He indicated he was the promise of God. He was the Messiah! Either he brought God’s  promise of the end times and a drastic change in that day’s world, or he did not.

The crowd does reflect on the claim; they are amazed and perplexed simultaneously. They spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. They recognized a persuasive speaker in their midst, but his pedigree  gave them pause. “Isn't this Joseph's son?” they asked.  How could he be the promised one of God? 

Knowing their thoughts, Jesus responded. In the Gospels, when someone thinks and then Jesus speaks, his words usually carry rebuke.

Jesus replied in three ways. First, he cited a proverb that indicated they wanted him to prove it. "Show me" was their basic response to his claim. 

Miracles or signs…, as powerful a testimony as they were to Jesus’ reputation, in the end never convince one who does not want to listen and accept. People must be willing to hear the message and receive it before they will see anything as God's work and their own part in it. Jesus’ message was a challenge to the status quo.  

Second, Jesus quoted the proverb that a prophet is often not honored in his own hometown. This remark revealed Jesus' understanding of Old Testament history. He knew how repeatedly God's messengers were rejected. God's message was often met with rejection. The proverb also served as a prediction that for many in Israel Jesus' ministry would fit into this tragic mold.

Third, Jesus recalls the history of Israel in the period of Elijah and Elisha (1 Kings 17--18; 2 Kings 5:1-14). The history lesson is a warning. That period was a low point in the nation's life, when rejection of God was at an all-time high and idolatry and unfaithfulness ran rampant. So God moved his works of mercy outside the nation into Gentile regions, as only a widow in Sidon and Naaman the Syrian experienced God's healing. This exchange revealed the basic challenge of Jesus' ministry: the choice he presented carried high stakes.

The crowd did not seize the opportunity. Rather, Jesus' warning angered them. The suggestion that Gentiles might be blessed while Israel reaps nothing left them fuming. Such displeasure at the accountability implicit in the gospel message is echoed in other scripture and the crowd knew that. 

Many respond similarly today when they realize that the gospel is a matter of "take it and act on it or you will be responsible for the consequences of your decision."

Jesus departed and slipped through the crowd, despite the crowd's efforts to seize him and throw him over a cliff.

People can try to turn their back on Jesus’s message  and even do away with him,  as this crowd tried to do but his message and challenge always will be remaining in their midst.


The challenge for our congregation is to look with fresh eyes at what may be the most often repeated scripture passage in Community of Christ. 

Jesus’ declaration in verses 18–19 is at the heart of our understanding of our mission. How can the message this week be an epiphany (seeing or understanding something in a new way) for us ?

Let us read it again with new eyes:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
    because he has anointed me
        to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
    and recovery of sight to the blind,
        to let the oppressed go free,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Jesus must have been well-known and well-respected as news of his return spread rapidly. People gathered in the synagogues to hear him speak…and they were pleased. After he finished reading, all eyes were on him. He must have been a favorite son in the villages near his home.

Still, they thought, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”  “Can this man who grew up among us be the Messiah?”

We learn from his time in the wilderness and his bold declaration in the synagogue that his goal was not to please others but to fulfill God’s call in his life.

Jesus commonly went to the synagogue. He was evidently familiar with reading scripture and letting God speak through the words on the scrolls. 

After his baptism and his sojourn in the wilderness, Jesus was clear that he had been called by God for a specific purpose.

Of all the options, the most likely is that Judaism taught that Messiah should only engage in certain types of self-proclamation. Perhaps also there is concern that the title Messiah would be understood with too political a force and bring the Romans down on them in force. 

Note: there was a strong connection between Jesus’ baptism, his time alone in the wilderness, and God’s call through the presence of the Holy Spirit. 

The same may be true for us. 

Jesus adapted the well-known prophetic passage of Isaiah 61 and heard God calling him through it. Sacred writings shaped Jesus’ life and they are gifts to us to help us shape our lives. 

We must keep pushing our understanding of mission up against this announcement by Jesus of his own call. After all, the church proclaims “Jesus’ mission is our mission”.

From our Doctrine and Covenants 162:7a
There are many lives waiting to hear the redeeming words of the gospel, or to be lifted from hopelessness by the hands of loving servants. But they will be lost to you without the generous response of disciples who share from their own bounty that others may know the joys of the kingdom. —
God gives and loves graciously and generously! We know that all we are and all we have are gifts from God. As followers of Jesus, our whole-life commitment is in response to God's wonderful generosity. Being generous is about aligning our priorities with God's priorities, aligning our hearts with God's heart. 

What is our response as disciples of Jesus? In simple terms, we are called to respond with thankfulness and share with others as generously as God has shared with us. The following six spiritual practices of A Disciple’s Generous Response guide us in managing and sharing our resources:

Be Generous
God gifts each person with boundless grace and unending love. Our response to that love and grace is to serve others and let generosity become part of our nature. 

Be Dependable
God's unconditional love for each of us is expressed through the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. When we faithfully respond to that ministry we become accountable to one another, God, and ourselves.

Manage Your Money
Managing the money we have, no matter the amount, expresses our desire to love and help God, neighbors, ourselves, and the world. When we focus our giving on God's purposes, our hearts become more aligned with God's heart. 

Share Joyfully
Tithing is a gift of thanksgiving to God and the church in response to God's generous gifts to us. When we share our tithes, the church can spread joy, hope, love, and peace around the world so others can experience God's generosity, too. 

Save Wisely
Saving is a way to prepare for the future. It gives us the chance to extend our love and create a better tomorrow for our families, friends, the church's mission, and the world. 

Spend Carefully
Responsibly spending is a commitment to live a healthy, happy life together with God and others. The teachings of Jesus challenge us to make lifestyle choices that are often countercultural. 



When we consider the ways that each principle applies to our lives, we respond faithfully and begin to discover our true capacity for giving. 

The promise in our Doctrine and Covenants 163:9 is clear: "Eternal joy and peace await those who grow in grace and generosity that flows from compassionate hearts without thought of return." We invite you to join us on this journey! 

Let us read again the Mission Statement of Jesus with even newer eyes:
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
    because he has anointed me
        to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
    and recovery of sight to the blind,
        to let the oppressed go free,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

If Jesus’ mission is our mission, when and how have we responded to the call to preach good news, to announce pardon and recovery of sight, to set the burdened free, to proclaim, that this is God’s year to act…through us? 

There are at least two ways we can implement this challenge. We can attempt to tithe 10% of our income as the recent Herald article suggests is the new norm for the church and to further the worldwide mission of the church and we can work in our own communities to implement that mission in our own communities where there is much need. 

We have attempted to do that as a community as much as we can with the size of our congregation.  But we can also do more as individuals by volunteering where volunteers are needed and by contributing to worthy community projects . 

Included with your bulletins, are copies of the Mission Prayer the World Church  has provided for us to carry with us in our billfolds and purses to refer to each day.  

And last of all let us each ask ourselves where  God has called us as individuals to go that we have not yet gone?

Thursday and Breakfast Club

Some of us will meet for breakfast this morning at 9:00 at Eggberts. Bobby and Karan and Joyce, at least. Marilyn L has decided to volunteer at the hospital on Thursday morning. She doesn't want to miss her exercises on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. We will miss her. She is well loved.

We will what to see what the day brings before deciding whether to dismiss the Living the Question group tonight. Howard and Judy are in town and may come to breakfast this morning. Joyce was to have called them. They were looking forward to seeing everyone at my apartment tonight. We will see what today's weather will bring.

I slept pretty well last night. I woke up several times but got back to sleep each time.  I was really tired when I went to bed.

I have my chili on cooking on low. I got it all ready to put together when I discovered my tomatoes were Italian tomatoes. I didn't want Italian tomatoes in my chili so I made  a quick trip to Country Mart to pick up some chili ready stewed tomatoes. Then I finished the chili and put it in the slow cooker on #2 setting to keep it warm. I have Freetos to serve with it and crackers. Bob brought over some coke to drink with it. This is one of our unhealthy meals. Every once in a while we have something not so healthy. We had our meatloaf, baked potatoes, salad and veggies yesterday with fruit for dessert. Maybe that made up for today. :)

The driveway my son and his wife are putting in for their new home.


Nice..isn't it?

Bob called me shortly before lunch and begged off the chili.  He had a relative who was coming to town and wanted him to go to lunch with him. I told him that was fine and put the chili in the frig for tomorrow.

I ate the leftover chicken fried steak and roll I had brought home from Sirloin Stockade on Sunday.  Later after reading a couple of hours, I went to Arby's and got a small chocolate shake.  Probably shouldn't have... but did anyhow...

The weather is not doing much so we will have the Living the Questions group here this evening. I don't know how many will brave the cold to attend but I will go get Gary at 6:45. He doesn't have a car. Hopefully Bob will be here to greet the others and let them in.


Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Wednesday and Game Day and PINCH

This will be another busy day. I have a 9:00 doctor's appointment and then I will come home and fix lunch/dinner for Bob and me. After that, I have game day at 1:00 at the senior center. Then at 5:30, I have the regular monthly PINCH meeting at the Presbyterian church. So I should be tired this evening. This morning before I leave for the doctor's office, I will bake my brownies for game day this afternoon.

I slept fairly well last night.I woke up three or four times with my legs and the toes on my right foot aching. My hands were also sore. Finally, I got up and took a couple of Aleve. That didn't completely help but it was better and I got back to sleep. Finally I got up a little after 5:00.

I've fed Missy and myself breakfast. I had a small banana and oatmeal and orange juice. Now I am having my coffee and Chai Latte. In a little bit I will get those brownies in the oven.

We didn't get  the snow after all....yet.  Maybe we will get it this afternoon although I doubt it. Coffeyville is the lowest area in Kansas and much weather misses us. It just goes right around us.

I'm back from the doctor's office now. I had very good blood pressure this time 131/68. He did want me to have a pneumonia shot. So I had that and got my blood work done too for my thyroid. I did run onto black ice and when I got out of the doctor's office, it was covered with snow. I scraped my car windows so I could see to come home.  I drove 20 miles an hour and also walked flat footed so I wouldn't slip and fall. 

Bob is coming over any time and I will go ahead with dinner in a few minutes.

More still later....

Dinner turned out well. I did find out one thing..or two. The game day at the senior center is NEXT Wednesday instead of today. So I have brownies for tomorrow evening's Living the Question group meeting.  I will get  some vanilla ice cream to serve with it or use the butter brickle I already have.  I will not make my Apple Brown Betty after all. I need to use those brownies.

Bob went home to take his nap and I ordered another book to read from Amazon for my Kindle since I finished the last one.  I will read this afternoon since the weather is so snowy. They also cancelled the PINCH meeting because of the ice.

More even later...

Here Hoover checks out one of his puppies.

 

Bob came over to watch the news with me and left at 7:00. We will see what the weather looks like tomorrow afternoon before we make a decision about the Living the Questions group.  They did call off the PINCH meeting this evening. It's supposed to snow or have a mix this evening.

Tuesday, January 19, 2016

Tuesday and Hairdo Day

And boy, do I need it! My hair is a mess! Wind has played havic with it!

Bob did come back over last night and watch the news with me. He went home at 7:00. Missy comes over to my chair and stares a hole in me wanting up on my lap.  When that doesn't work, she goes over to Bob and stares at him. She knows he goes home at 7:00. And she wants him to leave earlier so she can get up on my lap. We get a huge bang out  of her antics.

I slept pretty well last night. I was probably awake an hour in the middle of the night but I finally got back to sleep and slept until 6:00.

At 8:20, I will pick up Bob to go to Independence on the Sunflower road detour. It takes about ten minutes longer but it is a paved road. The other detour which is opened is  a country roads with gravel. We are forecast for rain turning to sleet and snow this afternoon. We will see. We intend to stop at Big Cheese and have a mini pizza there before we come back home. Between the appointment and the lunch, I want to go out to their Walmart Superstore and try to find a few things I wasn't able to find at our smaller Walmart.

Tomorrow I intend to have meatloaf and baked potatoes for lunch. We will have a veggie and Bob's salad. By then I will have fruit to have with cookies.  I need to make brownies for treats for the game day Wednesday afternoon at the senior center. Unless we get a lot of snow or ice, I want to go.

More later...

We are under a winter weather advisory until 9:00 tonight so I am playing it carefully.

We did get to my hair appointment just fine. The winter weather hadn't started yet. We also went out to the Independence Walmart  and I found everything on my list.Then we went to Goody's and I got a good deal on two knit shirts.  One is purple and the other is orange. I can use those. Many of my knits are years old.

Then we went to a hardware store and looked around until time for the Big Cheese to open. We had our mini pizzas and yum!.... they were good! Finally, I went to the post office and got that book in the mail that sold on Amazon on Friday evening. The post office was closed on Saturday, closed on Sunday and closed on Martin Luther King Day. So it got off to a slow start.

Then as we were coming back down Sunflower Road, it began to mist. The afternoon will tell whether we get that winter weather they have forecast.

Missy is asleep in the recliner and I am posting on my blog.

I should bake those brownies for game day tomorrow and I have a doctor's regular check up in the morning at 9:00. I hope I can get there safely.

More later....


Bob has a new great granddaughter. Sydney Kay Perkins. 8 lbs and 6 oz. and 21 inches long. I tried to copy the photo her grandmother (my niece) sent to me but for some strange reason, I couldn't copy it off e-mail.

He didn't come over this evening. It was just too cold and wet. I took my bath early and sat with Missy in the recliner.  Finally after 8:30, I just went to bed.