I HAVEN'T TURNED OUT YET...AMAZING GRACE!

Notice with me how the apostle Paul begins his first letter to Timothy:

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"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus

according to the commandment of God our Savior,

and of Christ Jesus, who is our hope;

to Timothy, my true child in the faith:

Grace, mercy and peace

from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord."

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If you've visited this blog recently, you know that we are spending alot of time discussing Christ's "Beattitudes" in His Sermon on the Mount. We are now on Beattitude #5, "Blessed are the merciful..."

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How do you and I create an atmosphere of hope, grace, mercy, and peace in our homes? How do we teach our children to be mercy givers? I am convinced that it must be part of the family's life style. There must be a personal connection, not just a jar to collect pennies to donate to an orphanage once a year. The more we talk about how thankful we are for the grace, mercy, peace, and hope that God has extended to us, the more natural it comes to extend those same things to others.

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When our children were young, they went with Steve or I or both of us regularly to visit widows. They became friends with orphans. They gave their own things to those who had been burned out or suffered loss in some way. We made meals for families and delivered them together. We had people in our home who were struggling, discouraged, or needing a boost. As they matured, they went on mission trips to:

• inner city USA in Nashville, Denver, and NYC
• Hurricane Katrina Relief
• homeless shelters
• Russia
• Dominican Republic
• Ecuador

Often, they would sing to whoever they ministered to. I remember several people including Kathy, who was blind. She wanted to hear the kids sing several songs including "Amazing Grace". In spite of her circumstances, she wanted to be reminded of the grace and mercy that the LORD had extended to her.

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Someone asked Steve and I recently if any of our children, as young adults, have worked with people with special needs. My immediate response was to say that Crystal is now majoring in special education. Then, I heard Steve say, "Yes, all of them!" Jordan worked at a home for people with disabilities while going through York College. Although he graduated in 2003, he still keeps in contact with some of his former "clients". Jessica was the head tech at a home for people challenged with schizophrenia while going through Indiana University and she worked at a home for those with disabilities while attending Abilene Christian University. Caleb now works full time with clients with disabilities. Crystal has developed a passion for working with children with autism. All of our children continue to be major mercy givers!

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The last few weeks there has been much about health challenges and death on this blog: Connor Deal, John Baldwin, and Lowell Keesee. We were in prayer for Connor and John before they went on to eternity. Lee Smith, in our congregation, also passed away this past week. His viewing was Monday, the funeral and meal for the family were on Tuesday, and the burial was on Wednesday. At the meal on Tuesday, I found out that one of Lee's granddaughters is engaged to one of my students. We prayed for Maria through her tumor removal surgery. We continue to pray for Lauren as she awaits a new heart. How do we extend mercy and grace to these families? The other night, as soon as Brian Mansdoerfer heard that John had passed on, he headed over to John's house to extend mercy by shoveling the driveway and walks before the grieving family returned from the hospital.

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Last night, as I was visiting a few blogs, I was once again overwhelmed by how the Holy Spirit works. I went to multiple posts that continue this discussion. They gave me more food for thought. I share them with you here:

• my niece, Jauna Reeger, who runs a camp for children with her husband in Ecuador discusses a recent trip to the country of Columbia http://reegersinecuador.blogspot.com/
• friend, Laura Coppinger's March 4th post called WOMEN WITH A MISSION: SERVING WITH YOUR KIDS (alot of people have commented to her post to add to the discussion and give more ideas and insight) http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/blog/category/women-with-a-mission
• friends, Trent and Tyler Hinton had this video on their blog that is a great way to end this post today. http://trentandtylerhinton.blogspot.com/