Living With Excellence

by   July 24, 2021 with No Comments

By Doug Creamer

            The rumor that Larry Macon allowed me to fly his plane solo is just not true. I am going to have to stop spreading that rumor! I did go to the airport the other day. I went to see Larry Macon receive the FAA’s highest honor for a pilot. He has flown planes for 50 years without any accidents or mishaps. Larry is a step above professional.

            I walked out to see his plane after he received his award. It is a beautiful biplane. I walked up to see where Larry sits and any passenger who dares to ride with him. I am not sure there is a place for my long legs. It is a very tight space.

            I am not sure I am brave enough to ride with Larry. You see, Larry doesn’t fly the plane in a straight line. No, his plane doesn’t work that way. I think there must be a warning sign that says, Caution! This plane flies straight up, straight down, sideways, upside down, but NEVER in a straight line. I like flying, but not upside down so my food ends up all over the canopy.

            Larry flies with absolute excellence and precision. He competes all up and down the east coast, and when he enters a competition it’s a pretty high probability that he will win. Every time he flies his plane upside down or straight up until it stalls, he is executing moves that will be graded on how perfectly he completes the maneuver.

            Larry has been trained by some of the best in the industry, and he can train you if you want to learn to fly. If you ever get on a commercial flight and see Larry sitting on the plane, you can rest easy. If anything were to happen to the pilots, Larry could get everyone home safely…safely, that is, after he flies the plane upside down over the airport and then back around for a perfect landing.

            I have known Larry through our church, where he is the church administrator. He brings the same precision to our church finances. Every dollar that comes into our church is carefully accounted for and with complete transparency to our church congregation. I love numbers and I can assure you that Larry does everything right. He lives his life at a higher level and raises the bar for anyone who comes in contact with him.

            I have always tried to live my life right. I want to be perfect for my Heavenly Father. The trouble is that I fail miserably. I can’t seem to live an hour, much less a day, without having wrong thoughts, attitudes, choices, and behaviors. I need a savior who can wash me with His blood and present me clean before the Father.

            If you are striving to live perfectly, give up! No one is perfect. God doesn’t want or expect us to live perfectly. But I do believe that God wants us to live with a level of excellence. Living life with excellence means that we bring our “A” game to everything we do. I don’t like it when someone tells me that they are a Christian and then they do lousy work for me.

            We can lead our lives with integrity. We can lead our lives as good examples for others in our field of work. We can treat people fairly and honestly. We can be a role model for children.  Again, not perfect, but choosing to live right for God.

            I am dependent every day on God to make me a righteous man. I am dependent every day on Jesus to forgive my sins and failures. I am dependent on the Holy Spirit to guide me in my decision-making and to lead me on the path of life.

            If I will spend time in His word it will wash my mind and refresh my soul. If I will seek His kingdom and His righteousness then I will find life. If I will choose to listen for that still, small voice, I will discover a life filled with integrity. I believe I can achieve excellence by following in His steps.

            I want to encourage you to stop chasing perfection, which is unobtainable, and seek excellence. You can choose to live your life with integrity and bring honor and glory to God. Work hard at the tasks God gives you to do. Give it your best and leave the rest in His hands. Making the right choices in life requires God’s help. Lean on Him. Trust Him. Walk with Him, He will show you the way.

Doug Creamer has a new book at Amazon: EncouragingU: Summer Stories. Contact him at PO Box 777, Faith, NC 28041or doug@dougcreamer.com

Seasons and Sadie

by   July 23, 2021 with No Comments

By Roger Barbee

            Sometime last week I first noticed the seasonal changes on the mountain. Working in the raised flower garden, I went to the shop for some pruning shears and on the way back, I glanced to the saddle just south of Edinburg Gap. Yep, there was a light touch of yellow, gold, and specks of red. Since that day last week, the change has spread along the ridge, causing the mountain to take on an array of colors like those of an artist’s palette.

            However, before the cold and snow of another winter arrives,  we have weeks of sharp, vibrant colors to enjoy. Not only have leaves begun to turn on the ridge of the mountain, but I have seen some sugar maple leaves turning.  It is indeed a magical season that seems to have arrived unannounced, but I know that lack of awareness  is about me and not the seasonal cycle. Yet, we all are often taken aback by how quickly the change of seasons happens. On the last day of September, while working on a doll house in the shop, I opened the large doors that face the mountain so I could see the same saddle from last week.  I glanced up often to marvel at  how the colors had increased. Not only had the ridge taken on more color, but also the base shone with a dull orange tinge that announced the coming change. Sanding and painting the intricate parts of the doll house, I thought how as this seasonal change has come  many of us in the valley have continued on with our daily lives—the joys, the sorrows, the squabbles, and the mundane, without taking heed of the dramatic change happening on the mountain and around us. Then I thought of Sadie and her words to Mary Ann, my wife.

                        When Mary Ann and I first met, one of the first people in her life about whom she told me was her long-time friend, Sadie, who now lives in Gettysburg. Attending the same church, Sadie and Mary Ann had shared much in their lives until Sadie was called to counsel violent, male prisoners in the Pennsylvania state system. Over the years of her prison counseling, Sadie came to realize that, until she became an ordained minister, she would be limited by the restraints of the state prison system. So, this  spunky lady in her late fifties enrolled in the Lutheran Seminary in Gettysburg so that she could do more for “her” violent prisoners. After years of hearing about her and her work in the prisons with the men that she said had been forgotten, I was finally going to meet her.

                        Sadie and Mike, her husband, invited family and friends to her ordination. It was a lovely service in an old Lutheran Church near Gettysburg. However, what struck me was how much energy flowed from the small frame of Sadie. Like many celebrations, her ordination was over a weekend, but her glass-framed, smiling face seemed to be in all places with all her family and friends. With her ordination, her prison outreach expanded, and we began regular trips to Gettysburg to race the local marathon, see the historical sights, and share time with Sadie and Mike.

                        Sometimes we would share time with both, but on occasion  Mike would be out of town, so we had Sadie to ourselves. She showed us interesting, seemingly unknown parts of her hometown, she shared with us her work in the prison system, and her work as an assistant pastor. She told us how the men she ministered to had done horrible, unspeakable things, but also how they were human beings who had suffered abuse. She could sit over a meal and tell of these men without  judging; she acknowledged their horrific crimes and their humanity. And always, she was cheerful, bright, wise, and kind. Then  three years ago she shared, over a light salad, how she was having discomfort and could not eat much. That discomfort progressed into cancer.

                        Tears. Treatments. Pain. Fears. All of it and more, she and her family have gone through  much. Yet, like some people, Sadie has somehow continued to smile and radiate energy—until this week when she told Mary Ann, “I knew this would happen (her decline). Do what you have to do…it happens so fast.” The vibrant, loving lady who went to seminary late in life in order to serve humanity now has only about an hour of energy each day.

                        Change is happening on the mountain and in our lives. In the midst of all that change,  we are occupied with the ordinary concerns of life. But, are we living or just going through the motions? Perhaps we should heed Sadie’s words-”it happens so fast”-and do what really matters.

First Things First

by   July 21, 2021 with No Comments

By Ed Traut

Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

  • His Kingdom – the spiritual dominion of which our Lord Jesus rules over is what we are to pursue.  All the understanding and lifestyle.
  • Being righteous is to walk in right standing and relationship with Him on a continual basis.  We are justified through faith and now we pursue our relationship with Him.
  • All the things we so want or need will automatically come to us when put these first things first. 

Prayer:  Almighty God, I do choose Your kingdom and Your ways.  Teach me Your ways and Your Kingdom and I will follow them with all my heart.  I know You will add all which I need and desire, putting everything in its place. I comfort myself in You today and yield completely to Your full control.  I bless Your Holy name and thank You for Your goodness.  Amen. 
 

Ed Traut
Prophetic Life

Sleep Problems

by   July 20, 2021 with No Comments

By David Freeze

  I have been reading quite a bit lately about runners who don’t get enough sleep. Why? Because I am one of them and have begun to explore solutions.

   The strange thing for me is that I often include daily exercise and have long farm work hours, especially during summer. Should be able to go to sleep, right? Not often enough.

    For anyone with some insomnia, drifting off to sleep doesn’t come easy, nor does a full night’s sleep.

     Amy Bender holds a Ph.D. in experimental psychology, is a Calgary-based researcher at the Canadian Sleep Society and she helps Team Canada Olympians fall asleep. Ahead of Rio in 2016, she studied the sleep habits of 200 athletes to categorize their sleep problems and make recommendations based on their responses. If athletes score low on their ability to nod off, Bender knows what do about it. Here’s her crash-course on identifying insomnia and then bidding it farewell. 

    Bender says, “Do you struggle with insomnia or was it just a bad night?” She explains that there are three dead giveaways: waking up constantly throughout the night; not getting restorative sleep; and having difficulty drifting off within 30 minutes after turning out the lights. That last point especially is a big tip that a person is dealing with insomnia.

     This sleep disorder is probably common among your running buddies. There are a couple reasons for this. The first one has more to do with the personality types that are attracted to this lifestyle of sticking to a regular workout routine. “You might be a more A-type person and have more racing thoughts at night,” says Bender. When thoughts of a specific issue flood in, relaxing becomes increasingly difficult. 

       If the clock strikes 2:00 a.m. and your eyes are wide open, consider how strenuous of a routine you keep. “It is the most common sleep disorder. In our screening with Olympians, insomnia is the most relevant in athletes,” Bender notes. But haven’t we all heard that regular exercise is the key to better sleep? That’s partially correct. 

    “I think with the general population, vigorous exercise leads to reports of better sleep quality,” Bender says. But there’s a balance. When the workout routine strays from vigorous to extra intense, a person can pay for it when they go to bed, making someone a great candidate for disordered sleeping. 

   A 2014 study supports this notion and tosses another concern into the mix. Exercise too intensely and you may wind up with a whole slew of symptoms that come with this ailment. And yes, you guessed it, on that list is sleep insomnia. The study, published by Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise monitored 27 male triathletes over a six-week period while one group over-trained and the other did not. The group that was pushed confirmed that sleep disturbances are prevalent among over-trained athletes.

    “People with insomnia have fatigue but not necessarily sleepiness. It affects time to exhaustion so you may not be able to run as far as you normally could,” explains Bender. Fatigue and hard running simply don’t go well together. 

   What can we do about it? Bender lists several tricks to test before booking a sleep specialist appointment. One running-specific suggestion: run early in the day. “If you’re running outside, getting light exposure before noon, that’s associated with better sleep quality,” says Bender. 

    She says the common advice of no screen time before bed seldom works. But the following things might.

  • Breathing- Bender recommends a sleep exercise. Breathe in for four seconds, hold it for seven and slowly breathe out for eight counts. Repeat that four times before bed.  
  • Cognitive shuffling technique: Pick a word. While trying to drift off, imagine objects that start with each letter of the word. For example, if the word is “Bedtime”, visualize items that start with “B” and then “E” and so on. By focusing on this, those racing thoughts that disturb sleep are less likely to invade your night. 
  • Progressive muscle relaxation: Runners who know the workings of their body will like this activity. Tense up different muscle groups one at a time. Then release and focus on keeping tense areas relaxed.
  • Reading: Invest in a little bed-time reading (unless you find reading keeps you awake, of course). This works for me.

www.salisburyrowanrunners.org 

Looking Back

by   July 19, 2021 with No Comments

By Ann Farabee

Looking back

“I told my children about you,” she said, “I showed them a book we made in Sunday School.”

It had been around 30 years ago and the tools used to hold the book together were a hole puncher and some yarn. The title was, “The Story of Jesus.” Each page was simple – but the book contained the story the world most needs to hear.

She saved it. She showed it to her children. She told them about me.

That makes me smile.

Every Sunday morning, I went. I was on time. I was prepared.

It was a privilege. It was never a burden.

Sacrifice? Yes.

Time? Yes.

Money? Yes.

Commitment? Yes.

Homemade brownies for students? Often.

They were my students  – and we grew in the Lord together.

The students who sat in my classroom changed over the years as they began to grow up, but the power of the story of Jesus did not.

Decades later, I know many of them as adults.

It brings me great joy to see Jesus as the center of their lives.

Years of going to Sunday School every week to teach the children?

Totally worth it.

As a teenager, I remember sitting on the living room floor of my youth pastor’s home, surrounded by many others. One night he said, “Ann, would you read 1 Corinthians 13 for us?” I was scared, but I began leafing through the pages of my Bible, trying desperately to find it. The 13 verses seemed long at first, but the more I read, the more I felt something I did not recognize. I now know that it was the presence of the Holy Spirit in the room. As I read the last verse, “And now abides faith, hope, love – these three. But the greatest of these is love,” a tear fell onto the page. It was mine.

I had no idea that night as I nervously read those verses to the youth group that in the future, I would be reading many verses many times with many students.

The Lord was directing my steps, even though I had no idea that Psalm 37:23 gives us that exact promise – He will direct our steps!

Looking back? Yes. We need to tell the next generation the praises of the Lord, his strength, and the wonderful works he has done. Psalm 78:4

A child from a home with an alcoholic father reading her Bible aloud in youth group?

That was me.

A young adult teaching Sunday School?

That was also me.

Hearing a former student tell me she told her children about me?

And then showing me the book we made?

Priceless.

Our efforts will last for generations to come.

Serve the Savior.

It is worth it.

Swapping Stories

by   July 17, 2021 with No Comments

By Doug Creamer

            Last weekend we planned to have an author signing at Father and Son Produce Market for our new book, EncouragingU: Summer Stories. We had hoped to have the whole gang show up, but life happens and kept a few of the writers away. So David Freeze, Jane Patterson, and I greeted the produce-hunting folks that stopped by to see us.

            It is so nice to meet people who follow our writings. When you sit down to write a column you never know who will read it and what impact it will have on the reader. You share a little piece of yourself, hoping that your words find a way to lift someone’s burdens, if only for a few moments.

            David seemed to know everyone. He told stories and shared laughs with the customers. Some of the people who stopped didn’t know any of us, but they wanted to find out what we were doing there. Once they heard, some of them bought our book, while others shared their stories with us. It was really special to connect with people.

            There were moments when no one was engaging with us, which gave us a chance to talk among ourselves. I didn’t know that David and Jane grew up together. They shared stories of their past with me. They kept me laughing with some of their adventures.

            Each of us took time to regale the others with stories from our background. Jane talked about growing up on a farm. David shared tales of his bike trips. My favorite was when he met a grizzly bear and almost became the bear’s lunch. I shared my stories.

            The conversation and the stories flowed smoothly among us as the temperature rose. When our time was up I am not sure we were ready for the conversation to end, but we all had other things that needed our attention.

            We met some readers. We told some wonderful stories. We sold a few of our books. I considered it a wonderful morning building friendships with David and Jane. My favorite part was the opportunity to swap some stories and to connect with fellow writers.

            The gift of storytelling has been around since the dawn of time. It’s one of the tools that Jesus used to teach us. Jesus taught his disciples in parables. Parables are stories with a lesson or moral. I have often wondered why Jesus taught using parables. The more I reflect on it, the more I realize that Jesus wanted His listeners to remember what He taught them. It is hard to forget a good story, and it is easy to retell it.

            Jesus wanted his followers and us to remember His spiritual truths. His stories were designed to help us live the victorious life that He promised. If we would apply the principles of His stories to our lives we will overcome and live transformed lives. We know His resurrection Spirit lives within us, and that gives us the power to break free from our past.

            Change is not an easy process. Old habits die hard. Jesus’ parables provide us with examples of people who succeeded. These stories should give us the courage to take the steps in our own lives to change and be transformed. Jesus didn’t offer us a life that was impossible to obtain. His stories illustrate that with a little faith, we too, can live our lives differently.

            With a mustard seed of faith the prodigal can come home. I know that what I sow in my garden is what I am going to reap. Our Father is in heaven and we are His children. We have found the pearl of great price. We have built our house on the solid rock, not the sand. We have found the narrow path and we will continue to ask, seek, and knock. We hope that when others look under the leaves of our lives, they will discover the fruit of the Spirit.

            I want to encourage you to remember the stories that you have heard since you were a child in church. Those stories hold the power to help you with whatever you are facing in your life right now. Jesus knows everything about you and He loves you. He also knows that if you will stir your faith to believe and apply the principles found in His stories, you will overcome your circumstances and experience His resurrection power in your life. Stories are powerful teaching tools, and when you have experienced your transformation be sure to tell others your story, too.

Doug Creamer has a new book at Amazon: EncouragingU: Summer Stories. Contact him at PO Box 777, Faith, NC 28041or doug@dougcreamer.com

My Riding Buddy

by   July 16, 2021 with No Comments

By Roger Barbee

If you travel our lake front street early on some mornings, you may see two old men between a small building and the street. One is riding a stationary handcycle while the other sits in his chair and participates, not in the riding, but in the conversation—which covers a variety of topics.

 Ken is the riding buddy. I am the hand cycler. I knew him before I met him. I liked him then, more now.

Ken and his wife Cheryl were moving here from Rhode Island, and I first met her when she was here to check on the renovations of their new home which is across the street from ours.   I saw her checking for mail on such a visit, and I introduced myself, and as we chatted she told me that her husband was a cancer survivor and organ recipient.

After our encounter, I kept thinking of the man I had never met. I kept thinking of the man who, like my friend Mike, was a transplant survivor. I kept thinking of a man and his wife who were moving to live near a daughter. I kept thinking of cancer and its horrors. I kept think of an organ transplant. I respected and admired him before I met him because of all that he had done, none of it witnessed by me.

The moving van arrived on a day of rain. The renovated house was becoming a home for the woman I had chatted with and the man I had never met. But one day while driving home I passed a man I thought was he. After parking my car in our driveway, I went to the street to talk with the walker. It was Ken. He stood on the side of our street, and we talked about everything but nothing. It all mattered but was mostly of little significance. Yet what is important is that the man I had admired from a distance was now present.

Some mornings he walks across our street and sits in his chair as I ride. We talk and in that loose, relaxed chatter and banter we relate. We have learned each other, and I wonder sometimes if we would have ever met in our previous lives. But I doubt that because we led different lives then, but not now. Now he and I are here, two retired men sharing life lived well.

I knew Ken before I met him, and when he walks across the street to sit with me, we share more and more of this life as it is reflected from our past lives with its scars.

The mystic William Blake wrote, “ The bird a nest, the spider a web, man friendship.” Like the bird and spider of Blake, I have been gifted by the man I knew and admired before I met him. He’s my riding buddy.

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