Hello Everyone.....As I awoke this morning to 30 degrees outside, I was reminded of what happened to me EXACTLY a year ago....Joe and I were in Israel.....It is hard to believe it has been a year....and a few days before we had climbed Mt Sinai, which was no easy task....We got up at 2AM climbed on camels IN THE PITCH DARKNESS and wandered our way UP THE MOUNTAIN pretty much alone....cause you couldn't see JACK....or JILL for that matter.....didn't know where our group was....was just banking on my trusted camel....that at least he could see in the dark.....and lo and behold he could! Thank you Lord....We all met up in some tent and then proceeded on foot the rest of the way to the top....I was not in the best of health....had been coughing since the moment we got there....so breathing was not coming easy for me...Joe grabbed my hand and literally dragged my sorry self up to the top.....thank you Joe....Once there, I was joined by a few hundred people who had beat me there already....They were perched and waiting for the sun to rise....Saying it was cold is an understatement....But the coldness went away once that sun rose over the peaks and the sky lit up like nothing else....It was a sight to see....Our sweet friends Dan & Beth were with us to join in the celebration.....Dan & Joe got up the mountain like a couple of mountain goats...Beth & I didn't have it so easy....We were still breathing hard when it was time to descend....not quite the "spiritual high" I was hoping for....ANd now I am convinced that Moses did not throw the tablets to the ground...I am pretty sure he tripped and broke 'em....I have never seen so many dad gum rocks....everywhere....there was NO solid ground.....very rough terrane....AND to think Moses did this twice....Are you kidding me? AND he was HOW OLD AGAIN? Once was enough, thank you very much!
AND then a year ago today....I followed the steps of Jesus and was baptized in the Jordan River....I had been baptized July 8, 1964, but this time, it was more of a rededication.....It was another cold day....To be baptized there, you had to put on these little white robes which made us all look like little angels....(well, at least I did.....) There were 14 of us from our group who were going into the water....My breath was literally taken away when I got in the water....Can't remember EVER being this cold on purpose....Joe got on the other side and so I was baptized by him and Bob, our group leader, who was smart and had on a wet suit...But the amazing thing happened when I ascended out of the water....(which, by the way, is really dirty)....I got out and waited on the side to watch the other baptisms.....My entire body from top to bottom became warm as toast....amazing transformation....Being so cold I couldn't breathe....to feeling like a blanket was put around me.....God is so good like that....He takes my pitiful cold self and wraps me up and holds me close....and that is where I am today....I sat in front of my fire place this morning....feeling the warmth of the fire.....feeling God's warmth as He holds me close....Ps 46:10 has been been my verse this year: "Be still, and KNOW that I am God"....I know that I know that I know....that HE is my redeemer....my creator....my savior.....One thing I know is you can't BE STILL without slowing down....So I say to you SLOW DOWN today and BE STILL and KNOW that He is on your side, He loves you....He knows yours hurts, your pains....Tell Him and let Him hold you close and give you comfort and peace.....Have a blessed day my friends!
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