I am so thankful I was able to tell my sweet mother-in-law how much she meant to me before she made her way to heaven.

Good morning again, and welcome to Friday, March 27, 2020. I mentioned my mom yesterday and it reminded me of another remarkable mom in our family. In fact, yesterday would have been her 103rd birthday had she lived. She did have a very productive life of 81 years and made her way to her heavenly home back in 1998. She wanted God's best for her family and that could have been the reason why she wasn't sure about me back when we began dating in 1962. She had heard things. I can't deny them, however, I did put them behind me when I started dating her daughter much to the dismay of my old running buddies. It was nothing outlandishly bad, but, the threshold standard for good behavior was very strict back in those days. At any rate, she and I had a good long run together and she became one of the most influential women in my life. She was a prayer warrior. She prayed for me. She supported us during the good times and those that were very challenging. She was a woman of God. Never should anyone have ever underrated her intelligence or her ability. She could write up a storm. She wrote hundreds of poems and had some of them published. She could sew up a storm. She made hundreds of quilts and literally untold numbers of nick-knacks made out of fabric. She loved music. She could play and sing but she loved, even more, hearing her own children and their families singing together. She was a pastor's wife and that carried with it a lot of duties and responsibilities. Like I say, I have been blessed, my grandmother, my mom, my wife, her mom, and her grandmothers and they all played a role in helping me to become who I am today. Thanks be to God for Mom Rawles and her life. Amen.

We all need to find something to break the cycle of gloom that seems to be playing 24x7 around us. Here's something a wrote a few years ago about the power of laughter. ~ Title:

From a Peanuts Cartoon: Snoopy speaking to Woodstock, "You should get a job working in a tree." Woodstock appears to be ambivalent. Snoopy delivers the punch line, "You could be a branch manager, Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha!!!!"

The world marches on and most of us find ourselves doing somewhat the same as we embrace another day here on the planet. The way things are going these days, a whole lot of us find ourselves doing our best to cope. (Example: To face and deal with responsibilities, problems, or difficulties, especially successfully or in a calm or adequate manner.) It does help to maintain a sense of humor along the way. It really does. Laughter can be medicinal. That my friend is in the Bible. I want to share a few random quotes about laughter to help emphasize its value. Many of them are anonymous. “A laugh is a smile that bursts.” “Laugh as much as you breathe and love as much as you live.” “Nothing shows more of a man’s character than that which he laughs at.” “Earth laughs in flowers.” “The person who learns to laugh at himself will never cease to be amused.” “Laughter is the shock absorber that helps ease the blows of life.” “Laughter is the closest distance between two people.” “Laughter is a tranquilizer with no side effects.” “Laughter is the brush that sweeps away the cobwebs of your heart.” And finally, the one quote that should make us all take note as found Proverbs 17, verse 22: “A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones.” Let’s try not to have too many dried bones! Amen. ~

Example of a simple thank you.

I've written many times about us needing to let folks know how much we appreciate them and the contributions they have made to our lives. I once got very serious about doing this and I made a list and tried to contact each one to express my sincere appreciation. One fellow, in particular, was a supporter of mine when I was in high school. He went out of his way to keep me focused and motivated. He was one of those I sent a letter to many years after the fact. His wife told me after his passing how that letter was a prized possession to him and he showed it to many folks who visited them. See what I mean? What I said to him was the truth as I knew it, but, me saying thank you was huge to him. I was glad my folks knew how much I loved and appreciated them. I was glad my in-laws did too. The question is this: Are there folks in your life and maybe even some in mine who we need to thank God for and then to thank them directly? Sure. It must be genuine or it's not worth much. But, how easy it is for us to look back and find we didn't do it in time. They had gone on to their reward. That actually happened to a couple of those on my list. Just a thought. As far as I know, they are still picking up the mail so a card or letter might be a good way of making this happen. What a week it has been! We are praying that things will begin to get better soon. For everyone. I can hardly wait for the day when they tell us we can once again show up at the meeting place where we will all be together to worship our Great God! Together! Amen. .....More later.