Here I Am

We used to have a miniature dachshund named Buzz. Buzz came with us to South Dakota one year when we went on vacation. We had a great time and were getting ready to come back home after a long week. The night before we left I grilled steaks. I gave the steak bones to the dog to chew on as a special treat.  The next day we started for the long drive home, about nine hours. About an hour into our trek we smelled something awful. Being an Iowa farm girl I thought we must be driving by a hog barn. But I started thinking, there aren’t any hog barns in South Dakota. Suddenly I knew what it was…..the dog! It was the bones I gave him the night before making him sick. We had to stop often and smell that horrible smell. Each hour seemed like ten hours.  My husband got very upset, it took a lot of patience on everyone’s part to deal with this situation. Nine hours in the car with a sick dog…..ugh! There are many times in our lives when we need patience. God thought that patience was so i...

Yesterday I was talking with my son about when he first learned to swim. I told him he was about three when he took to the water. I reminisced with him for a while then I started thinking about when I learned to swim. It wasn’t when I was three but twenty three. Why was I so old when I learned to swim? I was terrified of the water.  When I was about five I went to swimming lessons. For some reason I was afraid to put my head underwater. The swimming instructor caught onto this real quick and sat near me at the edge of the pool. She said I should dunk in the water on three. She counted but I didn’t go under, instead she put her foot on the top of my head on three and dunked me and held me under the water; I was really terrified! I quit swimming lessons the next day and never learned to swim. Years later, when I was twenty three I did learn to swim but it took a huge amount of trust and courage on my behalf to accomplish it.  I often have troubles in my life and find that just l...

​Yesterday I was reading the Bible story of Elisha in the Old Testament, what an interesting read! One thing that really struck me was that Jesus and his disciples weren’t the only ones to perform miracles.  2 Kings chapters 2-6 provides us with the stories of Elisha’s miracles. He makes unsanitary water potable again, raises a widows son, makes a poison stew edible, makes an axe head float and feeds one hundred people. The later story, feeding the one hundred, is reminiscent of Jesus feeding the five thousand and the four thousand.  In the feeding of the one hundred, a man comes to Elisha with twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain (2 Kings 4:42).  Elisha instructs the man to “Give it to the people and let them eat”. The man states that the food is not enough for one hundred people but Elisha basically says to do it anyway.  The man gives it to the people and there was enough to go around with some left over. Where have I heard this story before?  Thro...

​When I was growing up my favorite person in the world was my paternal grandmother. My siblings and I were the only grandchildren she had so we were really special to her.  One thing my grandmother did exceptionally well was cook. When we went to grandma’s house we were always stuffed after a good meal. She made the most scrumptious desserts too which usually included apple pie. I did not particularly like apple pie, but one thing I really loved was blueberry pie. My grandmother knew this so she would bake a blueberry pie just for me. Because of this she called me “the blueberry girl”. One day years later I got a phone call saying that my grandmother had died, how would I ever live without her? I was devastated.  Later that night I had a really vivid dream. I was in my grandmother’s kitchen and there she was cooking at the stove with her back turned to me. I exclaimed, “Grandma, you can’t be here, you’re dead!” She turned around, smiled and said, “No, I’m not dead” and I woke ...

​I am from a small town in Minnesota. I often drive through the “main drag” of town. At a stoplight I see a woman sitting on the corner with all of her belongings in a shopping cart. She is known in town as Nicole.  Everyone knows about Nicole but no one does anything to help her. I often think, “Maybe I should stop and talk with her.”  Then I drive on. What if she was an angel waiting for someone to show her mercy? Hebrews 13:2 says “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it”.  Do you believe in angels? In the Bible, angels are described as heavenly beings, but most often they are described as looking just like you and me.  In Genesis 18:1-15 three men visited Abraham. Abraham offered them hospitality by granting them water, food and shade under a nearby tree.  The three men then told Abraham his wife, Sarah, would have a son. Sarah overheard this and laughed because she was advanced in ye...

​Worrywart, worrywart. If there ever was one; I am the champion.  My kids are going to a party on Saturday night. Will there be alcohol? Will there be drugs? Worry. My husband works in a hazardous environment. Will he get hurt? Will he get cancer? Worry. I worry about most everything. Why do I do this? How do I stop this vicious cycle? The Bible says to turn to God.  1 Peter 5:7 says “Cast all your anxiety on him, for he cares for you”. I have often repeated this verse over and over again when I feel worrisome. But one thing I have never fully understood is how exactly do I give my anxiety to God? Worry is not a physical thing that we can grab ahold of and say, “Here God, I heard you wanted this!”  Philippians 4:6 says “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God” Okay, this makes sense. By prayer and request with thanksgiving. Hmmmm…. Please God, take this worry from me. Okay, this makes se...

​In the book of Mark, chapter 5 verses 1-20 is the story of a tormented man named Legion. I find this story very intriguing and interesting.  One day, Jesus and his disciples traveled across the Sea of Galilee to Gerasenes. There they found a man possessed with demons; the man bowed down to Jesus. The demon possessed man  said, “What have you to do with me, Jesus?” Jesus knew this man was possessed by demons. In this instance, it was also obvious that Jesus knew the demons, and the demons knew him.  But if the man was full of demons, why did the demons bow down to Jesus? Did the demons fear him? It is obvious in many other Bible stories about demons that they knew and respected Jesus. In this way, we are protected from the evil one if we believe in Jesus. Another great reason to worship our Lord and Savior!  Jesus asked the man, “What is your name?” The man answered, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” How many is many? Two, two hundred, two thousand? It must have ...