I am blessed

Years ago, Nancy & I moved to Stephenville to start the Cowboy Church of Erath County. Within a few weeks we joined a Health Club. We met a young man named Donnie. Donnie was the trainer who helped people get into physical shape. Donnie was an encourager but more than that he was a vibrant Christian.  At the health club…he encouraged folks to get into spiritual shape. Every time I saw Donnie, I would ask, “How are you, Donnie?” Donnie responds, “Brother Charles I’m Blessed!”  Sometimes he would say, “I’m too Blessed to be Distressed.” What a testimony! When we are asked how were doing, many times we just comment on our problems. I think that if we reflect on our lives, as the Psalmist did in Psalm 103, then we to can say, “I’m Blessed!” Think about this: The shortest distance between a Problem and a Solution is the distance between your knees and the floor. The one who kneels to the Lord can stand up to anything.  It comes down to control. Rick Warren, author of The Purpose-Driven Life, said that we can organize the church for control or for growth, but not for both. The same is true of our lives. We can stay in control of our lives, and seek safety, security, and predictability. Or we can turn control of our lives over to God, and experience growth in joy, peace, purpose, and power. The issue faces us every morning, every decision and in every significant event. Each day we need to acknowledge that God has and is blessing us.  Where is Charles & Nancy this morning? We have a dear friend named Kim. We met Kim back in 1998 when I became Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Portland, Texas. Kim recently retired as an Educator. This weekend, Kim married her fiancé, Scott.  The wedding was at New Braunfels, Texas. Her parents are deceased and we wanted to be there to celebrate her marriage to Scott.

Refuge Worship & Recovery Ministry to begin Sunday, January 25th @ 5:00 p.m. Happy Birthday to Margeret Caskey. She had a special Birthday this past week. "I am too blessed to be stressed!"

-Charles