Our Sweet Chet

Chet Wood has gone on to her reward. She was one of the spunkiest women I've met, but she loved her Lord, her family and politics...in that order.

She and her husband had a calling on their lives to spread the Gospel through a tape ministry and that they did well. The Gospel has been spread, through the messages on tape, throughout this country and who knows how many others. She made sure that if there was a good message preached that she had it on tape to share with others.
I have fond memories of her signing my name up for a message preached when I wasn't there and hunting me down to personally give me my tape. I laugh when I think about how she and Bug would take up the paper that you could sign up for before Bill (another saint gone on to glory) could get back there to sign his name and he would run after them to make sure his name was on there. It got to be a competition to see who could get to that paper first for them. I miss those three.

She never hesitated to pray for her family and to ask for prayer if there was a need. She loved her daughter and son. She loved her grandchildren. It was obvious.
She loved her church family too and they loved her right back. You couldn't help it. There wasn't a Sunday that she didn't hug my neck and kiss my face. I would look for her just to get that hug and kiss. Even when I helped cut their grass, I would still get a hug and kiss...no matter how dirty I was.
I can vividly remember her looking up at our pastor, placing her hand on his face and thanking him for the message. She did that often. Oh, how she loved the men of God who brought the Word! Not just our current pastor but even our founding pastor. When he would visit she never failed to tell him how much he meant to her.

She also loved politics, good politics. She spent countless hours searching for men of God who desired to bring the country back to a nation built on the Word of God. She prayed for them and sent out email after email to all of us letting us know who these men were.
I remember coming to her house to cut her yard one summer day and there she was, outside with a man who looked a bit uncomfortable. He was going door to door "politicing" (as she would say) and didn't know that Ms Chet knew her stuff and she was giving him all she had, encouraging him to run for office and do what was right in the eyes of the Lord. Bug had long since gone back in the house because Chet had it handled. That poor guy looked ready to leave but she wasn't through with him. I think he was never glad to see people cutting a yard as much as he did that day. I just pray that her words of wisdom to that lost soul was a seed planted.


But that's what we have now. Just memories until one day when we too can see our Saviour face to face. Chet longed for this day. She would say "I can't wait to get to heaven to see my Saviour and be reunited with my Bug." She loved her husband but she loved her Saviour more. What a Godly woman we had in our midst and I'll miss her. Oh, how I miss her. But I wouldn't wish her back for one instant and will patiently wait the day when I too will see my Saviour and be reunited with those I love.

Chet Wood was Godly, classy and absolutely lovely. I love you, Ms Chet. Until we meet again...

What Does It Mean To Be Saturated In The Word?

Is it just to read your Bible every day?

Is it to memorize familiar verses?

Is praying on occasion enough?


Or....

is it to be so full of the Word that it consumes my thoughts, pours out of my mouth, overflows into my actions and interrupts my daily duties on this earth.
How can I feel the love of God "underneath me, all around me" if I don't study the only book that points me to that love? How can I have hope if I'm not grabbing at the only book that offers hope? How can I have joy if I don't read the book that shows me Who died to give me that joy?





Lord, may I yearn to be in Your Word. Saturated, so that Your love, hope, joy pours out to those around me.

Motorized Mania

So I go to Walmart every so often.


Fine. I go like 2-3 times a week. I have needs.


I'm starting to see a trend when it comes to the motorized carts that they provide for the HANDICAP, ILL, ELDERLY. (I placed them in large letters in case you misunderstood the purpose of the carts.)

They are for those who can't walk, or can't walk for long distances.


They are not for:
-racing
-pregnant women
-teenagers or anyone who cannot drive a car, buy cigarettes/alcohol or even vote.
-convenience because you've had a hard day at work and don't feel like walking.



As I walked through the store just a few weeks ago, I was literally nearly run down by one of those carts. She barely missed me. The driver...a girl who couldn't even have been even 14 years old. I gave her my standard dirty look of "Hey. Watch where your goin' chick!" and went on my way.

I round another corner, and she comes flying by AGAIN and almost hits me AGAIN.

Unfortunately, I speak before I think. A lot. So I said, "I have a feeling that you don't really need to be on that thing. Are you disabled? Does your mother know your driving around here like that? What if you hit a child? You need to get off that and I mean now."

She smiles at me with such a sickeningly "I don't care what you think" smile and flies off.




Since I spoke so kindly to her, she went to tell her mother...who was also riding a cart AND her younger brother, who brought up the rear on his. They followed me all. over. the store thinking they intimidated me, I guess. I did mention to the young girl that I was going to find a manager since she obviously had no disability except disrespect and laziness. Not one manager was to be found! How convenient. *insert sarcasm*


I don't know if you can tell, but this really gets my goat. Three motorized carts driven by three inconsiderate people who couldn't care less that someone might really need one.

What is this world coming to?!


And then to top it off!...we saw a pregnant lady riding on one today. She happened to be our patient, so I know for a fact that she did NOT have any disabilitating issues and she wasn't even close to term.

Call me naive and misinformed, but the last I checked carrying an unborn child did not deem you disabled.


The moral of this bog...don't ride unless you got a reason. Period.

I will call you out.

The Key

Hello blog. It's been a while.





A lot has been going on in this past year, but what weighs heaviest on my mind is the diagnosis of cancer, metastisized cancer, in my dear pastor's wife.
Not only is Colleen my pastor's wife, but she's my long-time friend. A woman that is very much like my sister/aunt and has been for most of my life...long before she was my "pastor's wife". I knew her newly married, when kids where just a prayer on her lips. I saw her in the hospital with each of her four girls. I have cried and laughed along with her. I knew her when holidays were exciting because "Mark and Colleen were coming over!". She was family to us, to me. She still is.





But I struggled with the diagnosis of metastisized cancer. And I had no idea the range of emotions I would experience, or the lessons I would learn/be learning.





For me, it started with shock. You just don't know what to think, when to think.You don't know how to pray. I told myself that I was acceptant of God's will but these little spurts doubt kept creeping in. It wasn't long before I started getting angry whenever I would talk about it or think about it or pray about it. But I couldn't figure out who I was angry at, or why.

There was no way I was angry at Mark or Colleen because they bathe every decision in prayer and seek God's will for all they do. I couldn't be angry at God...or so I thought. I found myself saying that I was angry at cancer. But if you think about it, that makes no sense.




Coming to realize where my anger originated, who it was against, repentance, contentment, peace came one night at church when someone spoke of reading Pilgrim's Progress with their family.


In Pilgrim's Progress, Christian ends up in Doubting Castle which was guarded by the Giant Despair. Christian had no hope for escape and only death to look forward to. But he remembered that he had a key called Promise that he kept in his bosom and it would unlock any door.

It took remembering that small part of a book (my favorite part, might I add), to show me that I was angry at God. Angry that He would allow Colleen to have cancer. Angry that it wasn't found sooner. Angry that it had metastized. Angry that their therapies didn't work. Angry that it wasn't me even.

I was just plain mad. Completely pushing against the will of God.


Now, you ask, what does any of this have to do with doubting castle and the key of Promise.

God allowed them to go through such a valley to show me that I had locked myself in a castle of despair. My anger was nothing more than pride and it locked me into despair that went much deeper than my anger.

How did I get there? How did I get from contentment to anger so quickly? I still don't know but I'll consider it a lesson learned, a valley that has taken me back to mountains of peace.

And even more good news!!!

We too have the Key of Promise. Promises that He will never leave us or forsake us. Promises that all is for His glory and our good. Promises of healing, whether on this earth on in heaven. Promises of eternity with no diseases, including the most terrible disease of sin.

What a relief to know His will will be done and I can honestly say that's good enough for me.