The Lord's Prayer....What it Means to Me

An idea pop-up hit me this morning and I don't know how well it will come off but here goes...I am going to break down the Lord's prayer....as to what it means to me.....who knows where that idea came from...
Our Father....this means God of course...He is the Author and Finisher of us all....our Creator...Alpha and Omega.....the beginning and the end.
Who art in heaven....That is where He is....that is where he resides...with the angels and with his precious Son and our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Hallowed be thy name..........His name is sacred...his name is powerful and mighty!...we are to honor His name always!
Thy kingdom come.....His kingdom will be established on the earth one day...we don't know when, but HE does and we pray this all the time...but how many people actually mean it...His kingdom will be perfect..not to fall ..not to be overpowered by any one man. He will establish perfect justice down here, without a doubt!
Thy will be done....that is His will...not ours........and again ...His will is perfect..no flaws anywhere in His plan for the earth. He will take care of all the political confusion, the ozone layer will be fixed...his truth will reign and there will be no doubt in anyone's mind...Who He is!
On earth as it is in heaven.........that's here folks, that means that earth is going to be just like heaven...perfect...a wonderful dwelling place...the way it was originally meant to be! How exciting is that...we will all be walking around in a beautiful place...like Adam and Eve did way back when! Awesome!
Give us this day our daily bread....sustain us, Lord...we ask that we be cared for and we know that HE does take care of us...He blesses us every day.
And forgive us our trespasses....We mess up all the time and without His forgiveness we would be forever lost...He has mercy upon us...Be thankful for that one!...His mercy endures forever!
As we forgive those who trespass against us..........here is the hard one! It is not easy to forgive sometimes...especially when we have been wronged...But God asks us to forgive others, so we need to do it! Bury the hatchet...start today by saying you forgive someone that you have held a grudge against...you will feel better and so will they...God doesn't give bad advise!
Lead us not unto temptation....there is a wicked one hovering over all of us out there, folks..it's Satan...more than anything he wants us to ignore God and dance to his evil tune...but we are to turn away from his tempting evilness...lots of bad things look really good and make us feel like we are in charge...but God tells us to avoid evil..so that is what we are to do!
But deliver us from evil...God will deliver us..but we have to ask Him to..we have to want to be delivered..that is where Jesus comes into the picture...He came here to deliver us...that was His purpose on the cross...a human sacrifice, sent by his father to do just that....Deliver us from our sinful ways and offer us a great home in heaven ....we can be part of that family...we are His church...His bride........
For thine is the Kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and forever......Forever is a long time folks....and since He is the beginning ....he will mark the ending...but it will be just the beginning of His Kingdom on earth....one that He will establish in His own timing....not ours, mind you, but His...We must trust, Wait upon the Lord.....When that time comes...it won't be a time to fear if you are a believer....if you have given your heart to the Lord...When His kingdom is established...sin will be a thing of the past...we won't even remember what it was....no more fears..no more tears...just one big happy peaceful family!
That, my friends, is what The Lord's Prayer translates to me...thanks for stopping by...have a great week!

Vacation Stuff and Super Jesus

I been thinkin' what to post on here tonight..so I will make it simple...stuff I have done so far on my vacation: I am going to start with today cause I have already discussed the previous days somewhere..either on here or on MySpace and I have another blog that nobody knows about..and I don't go there so it doesn't count..I call it my venting blog...that is where I write about all the stuff that bugs me!
Today I went to old Walmart..they are moving to a big Super Walmart and are trying to clear out the store....a lot of stuff got moved but the rest is being reduced to clear it out..I found wheel covers for my car really cheap and that was my best bargain from there. I got new seat covers yesterday at a garage sale so I was happy because those were things that poor car really needed!
Tonight I took a friend to a music show at a church here in town ...that was fun..we went to Pizza Hut first and split a Pizzone. Those things are gigantic...and yummy! I know someone who works in their kitchen and we got a complimentary dessert pizza...I couldn't eat much of that so brought most of it home after I shared some of it with my friend.
I also checked my work schedule for next week, as I will be returning to work Wednesday...which is the same day Super Walmart opens...I predict that the store will be super slow, because everyone will have to check out Super Walmart...Anything new in this town always goes over big at first until the newness wears off and then it's no big deal. Isn't that the way it is about everything? One thing that the newness never wears off of is the newness of knowing Christ as your Savior.....Once you make that decision .....you become a new person and your whole outlook on life is never the same. I wasn't going to bring this up because I wasn't sure how it would be received or even if I should have done it...but here goes....I sent a message to a person on MySpace who calls himself Super Jesus..I basically told him what I thought of his blasphemous material and that he was being disrespectful to Jesus....Well, turns out this dude is an atheist....I argued with him repeatedly over the last two days...and tonight I sent one last message calling a truce...I see no point in casting pearls before swine any longer! He is on my list of lost causes...I feel bad that people like him are so closed minded...I know several people personally that fit in the same category as this guy...maybe not quite as bold....but still they lack faith...I tried to explain faith to him..he would not hear of it! The only thing I can do for him and people like him is to pray that they will come to their senses before it is too late.....I don't know why I shared this with you all tonight...I think it is because I know that there are many people out there just like Super Jesus...that think they have all the answers and deny the existence of God and don't want to believe that Jesus is God's Son and that He was sent into a sinful world to be a sacrifice for all sinners....Super Jesus........you probably won't ever see this...I tried my best to make you change your mind....but it will take more than me........I'll just pray for you.

Just an Ordinary Day

Today is the third day of my ten day leave from the old job...I can call it the old job because I have been on the same job for nine years...and that, for me, is a record! Not too exciting a vacation so far, except for an incident involving a near collision with a rather large SUV yesterday. I must learn to be a more defensive driver (although I didn't do too bad yesterday!) Today a person must concern themselves with the way everyone else drives as well as being alert to your own driving skills! I could expound on this subject further but it is not the purpose of this entry..so I will just let you all use your imagination. It is yesterday's news and I would just as soon put it behind me!
Today started out with the routine coffee, shared with Jose in our backyard this morning..I love our backyard..I look forward to flopping in my swing and having that first cup of coffee and taking in the morning..Morning is my favorite time of the day...I like to hear the birds...see what critters are in the yard and watching them all run for cover when we turn out the dogs...Kramer almost nailed a rabbit this morning...but the little booger was too fast for him. The rabbits that were just newborn a few weeks ago are big enough to stay ahead of him and are still small enough to make it through the fence..and out of his range! He gets so excited after the chase though and insists on going over the trail several times to see if he can get on track and usually winds up running in circles. Josie could care less..she just cheers him on..barking and bouncing around to make it look like she is helping! I have an older radio that Jose picked up at a garage sale..I turn it on to K-Love or WCIC and listen to my favorite Christian songs....sometimes I even sing along if there is one on I know well enough... bet the neighbors just love it! All this occurs usually right around 7 a.m. No complaints yet..so I guess the neighbors either love it or don't have the heart to spoil my fun!
My brother flew to Atlanta today and I was elected to bring his car back from the airport in Moline..his flight was a couple hours delayed so I made it back to Galesburg before he even boarded his plane...but I am sure he is probably in Atlanta by now. He is driving back a brand new BMW motorcycle...anyone interested in a used BMW feel free to let me know..I may be able to wrangle a commission out of him if I solicit a buyer! I am always open to new ways to make money..especially involving helping out my dear brother...
It has cooled off delightfully this evening..I turned off the air and opened the windows and have a cool breeze blowing through...very nice for July, I would have to say. A break from the last few days of heat and humidity is more than welcome.
I believe I have satisfied my blog requirements for the day and will bring this to a close....enjoy this wonderful evening. I will return again soon!

Kickin' Off the Time Off!

Today kicks off the first day of my vacation time...and it is also my oldest granddaughter's birthday. She is fifteen today and it is hard to imagine that she is growing up so fast! It is weird how just one day from your normal work routine can throw you off your time schedule..I almost forgot that today was Sunday! Here I am sitting out in the backyard, drinking my morning coffee when all of a sudden it dawned on me that today was Sunday..and that I have a lot to do today!
Yesterday was a very stressful work day and leaving the workplace made me appreciate the start of my vacation even more! I ordered a big chocolate chip cookie for Amber...to be picked up later today...she will like that...and my good buddy that works in the bakery is going to decorate it in her favorite color..lime green. I didn't have to worry about picking out a gift..she is all about cash this year and is planning on pooling together all her birthday dollars and purchasing an MP3 player.
I am looking forward to having a really good day today to make up for yesterday, so I am going to think positive and get ready to start the day. Church is a very important part of Sunday for me..would not even think of doing a Sunday without it! For real! Going there on Sunday morning keeps things in perspective...or I should say priorities...The main priority being giving thanks to God for the many blessings I have in my life. Think about it. If you were to stack up all your blessings..you would be amazed to realize that they far exceed the bad things you have to deal with occasionally! That is how I look at it anyway. It is the bad stuff that makes the blessings all the more appreciated! Count your blessings today, instead of dwelling on the "not so sweet" side of life and you will find you will be a much happier person!....on with the day...you all have a good one!

What are We Celebrating?

Independence Day or July the Fourth....however you choose to name today....is a great celebration in this grand U. S. A. What does this day mean to you? I am here to pose that question and perhaps attempt to answer it in my own humble way.
When I was a child growing up in a rather poor country home, this day meant getting to go to the county fair or looking forward to my older brother bringing home some fireworks. Setting off firecrackers in the backyard was especially fun. History was the furthest thing from my mind...
Today, living in this country....seeing what has happened in just the last decade, experiencing perilous times....being a witness to the horror of 9/11, has changed my outlook on the celebration of Independence Day.
When I think about how safe this country used to be....or at least, feel, and when I see all that is going on now, I wonder just how much freedom means to our citizens. Every time I see someone disrespect our President or put down our fighting men and women....I think about just how far we have come from the great country we started out as and where we are now. It is scary. Do you think that people like Abe Lincoln and Tom Jefferson and a bunch of other great countrymen of our past would talk like some of today's politicians? The principles that this country were founded upon have been sadly compromised for the principles of greed and self-destruction. Where are we headed? I dare to ask such a question on a day when we are supposed to be celebrating freedom....but I ask it just the same...because I fear for our freedom, and I fear for our Independence....if we lose sight of how these blessings came about...not from running from those who threaten our country...that is for sure! This country became great because of bravery, not cowardice. I just can't help but believe that the cost of freedom never goes down...and that when no one wants to pay the price...we may find ourselves losing the freedoms that cost so many so much!