Pray. Count to Ten. Walk Around the Block. Pray Again. Take a Deep Breath. Pray Some More!

Jim Gaffigan said of this coming holiday, "Thanksgiving is like we didn't even try to come up with a tradition. The tradition is that we overeat!" Then in a voice of another person he says, "How about at Thanksgiving we just eat a lot?" Jim then says, "We do that every day!" The other voice then says, "What if we over eat with people that annoy the (heck) outta us?"

David Letterman said, "If I wanted to negotiate with terrorists, I'd go home for Thanksgiving!"

Thanksgiving is a day to give thanks to God for all with which we have been blessed. The reality is that we do overeat, and sometimes with people that do annoy us or push us to limits we don't want pushed. Jesus did say, or meant to say, "Where two or three are gathered; there's going to be trouble." And there usually is. But should there be? Many we have not seen for a long time, and their comments or ours sometimes makes others feel bad especially if we make a comment of appearance. "You sure have gotten big!" Parents will say to children; some kids are sensitive, even at a young age, about their appearance. Some may already have a weight issue and the "big" comment really says to them, "You're getting fatter!" The child sensitive about his/her height hears, "Woah! You sure are tall!" Not what they want to hear. Some well-meaning parent may jokingly say, "What's the matter, son? That wife of yours not feeding you anymore?" Do I even need to explain that one? And yes, you can reverse the roles in that last statement. "Well, there's snow on the roof now!" Yes, our hair does get grayer/whiter with age. The classic is, of course, to the single people, "Why aren't you married yet?" in whatever "clever" form they may think of with which to torture those who have not yet, or have chosen not to, marry. You may have your own list, but the key is this: Jesus said, "Where two or three are gather in my name, there will I be also." The best Thanksgiving is to invite Jesus to sit with us at the table and to thank Him in genuine ways for all that Jesus has blessed us.

If a comment hurts, re-read the title of this post. Pray. Count to ten. Walk around the block. Pray again. Take a deep breath. Pray some more! Then smile, love back with a nice comment about them, and carry on. Oh yeah, the shirts begin with what Winnie said, "Keep Calm and Carry On."

May it be so.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Shine, Don't Pine!

It is said that David, when he says in Psalm 121, "I look up towards the hills," was referring to his enemies encamped around him, and he knew knew to answer his own question by saying and knowing, that his help came from the Lord. Smoke of us sometimes, look towards the hills and see other churches and pastors, and we pine for the day we might pastor such a church. Where would David have gotten had his vision been cast so low? He would have met defeat in every battle. He looked beyond the challenge to the source of help. We are also called to look towards God so that we might find victory where God has placed us. For a reason and a season, we march faithfully.

look beyond! and look upward. Shine, my friend, where you have been place.

For a reason and a season.

¡Ganas!

Okay, boys and girls, today's Spanish word is ganas. It's a simple, but powerful word. It literally means desire, and can mean to win, when used as ganar. For our purposes in this posting, it means desire; but deeper the drive to win is found in that desire. We used to say (and still do; in fact, that's what I'm saying now) ¡dale con ganas!

Anything we enter into should be with the passionate desire to success, or as Paul say, to be more than conquerors in these things of God. To be in a relationship, one must have ganas; a fire of passion to enjoy the other person; in a church setting as pastor or leader or servant, one must have ganas or it will show very quickly that we don't.

It's your choice. But to succeed, ¡dale con ganas!

Hit the Piñata with Your Eyes Open!

Piñatas have been a part of my life since way back. It seemed you could not have a birthday party in the town of Kingsville, Texas, without a piñata. Pictures of my birthdays show a piñata. We tried introducing that practice to our family, but having done a great job of raising them, they were not violent girls. The idea of using a stick to hit something, especially in the form of a person or superhero was not kosher. And they were correct; imagine having love and respect for Minnie Mouse and then having her appear at your party with the instructions, "Take this stick and hit Minnie as hard as you can!" Wait. What, Dad? Hit. Minnie. Mouse? I think not!

Image from pinterest.com

The piñata is a symbol of a special celebration. It is also a symbol of an opportunity. Those who are familiar with the practice, especially those of us who love candy, know that inside the papier-maché container, in whatever shape it comes in, there's candy! And the only way to get the candy is to hit the piñata; take the opportunity. Yes, the traditional practice involved a blindfold. I've often wondered why did so many childhood activities involve a blindfold? I remember going to parties where we were blindfold, spun around, and then told to "Pin the tail on the donkey!" Wait. What? There's a real donkey here and we're supposed to prick it with a pin? No way, sister! I'm not about to be kicked to the next life by a mistreated almost-horse! And even if led to the paper picture of a donkey, I was not one known for accuracy, especially when I did not know the purpose of the game... The piñata celebration also involved the spinning and blindfolding of children, armed with a stick, and then instructed to swing wildly in the air in hopes of hitting Minnie, Mickey, Batman, or some other object, usually another donkey, to get candy. I remember most kids were allowed to try and hit the piñata until everyone had a turn, and usually no one had hit the thing hard enough to get the candy. And then, blindfolds off, the stick was handed to the biggest kid with the hardest swing. Bam! And the candy would fall to the ground, and the kids would fight each other for the candy. Usually discovering, in those days, that the candy was usually the kind not found on the US side of the border. And once we tasted it, discovered why...

Life and ministry present us with several special celebrations, all of which come with opportunities, and we might discover, if we take advantage of these with good intentions, we might find a special surprise down deep beneath whatever we have encountered. Life does come with some blindfolds, but usually, our eyes can see beyond or through whatever blindfolds folks try to place on us or we place on ourselves. Every opportunity should be a time to enjoy the zest of life and to help ourselves and others discover the pleasant and rewarding substance of joy found in those who seek for it.

copyright 2014 Eradio Valverde, Jr.

Gratitude Lifts Our Altitude and Attitude

In the book The Traveler's Gift, Anne Frank is quoted as saying, "Too many times I have offered up the prayers of a bigger, always asking for more and forgetting to give thanks. I do not wish to be seen as a greedy child, unappreciative and disrespectful. I am grateful for sight and sound and breath. If ever in my life there is a pouring out of blessings beyond that, then I will be grateful for the miracle of abundance.

I will greet each day with laughter. I will smile at every person I meet. I am the possessor of a grateful spirit.

Today I will choose to be happy."

P. 110

Passion; It's What Works

"Getting started, getting finished -- both ends of a journey require a demonstration of passion." A quote attributed to Cristobal Colon (Christopher Columbus to you) in the book The Traveler's Gift by Andy Andrews, as he greets the 64th day at sea certain that he would see land on that day. He continues, "Passion is a product of the heart. Passion is what helps you when you have a great dream. Passion breeds conviction and turns mediocrity into excellence! Your passion will motivate others to join you in pursuit of your dream. With passion, you will overcome insurmountable obstacles. You will become unstoppable!"

Passion in the pulpit is what makes people believe you believe. Folks who hear a passionate sermon will respond with passion if your conviction and enthusiasm is genuine. Passion about God gets the results every sermon seeks; to reach all and bless those in need a blessing.

The opposite of passion is going through the motions; an unprepared, uninspired talk or report on something you read but did not feel.

You feel me?

The %'s in our lives...

40% of things we worry about, will not happen.

30% of the things we worry about, have already happened. Nothing in the world is going to change what already has happened.

12% of the things we worry about are needless imaginings about our health. Do I have cancer? Is that a tumor I feel? My leg hurts. My daddy died of a heart attack when he was sixty, and I'm 59.

10% of our worries are petty-little-nothings about what other people think. And we can't do nothing about what other people think.

8% is left over...for legitimate concerns. Please note that usually these legitimate concerns are things that can be dealt with.

The above percentages are from a wonderful book I am reading called The Noticer: Sometimes, all a person needs is a little perspective, by Andy Andrews. It is an easy, but powerful read; told in novel form about an old man who visits a town that shares with folks in need, the perspective they need to have better lives. The author shares some of his own story, of losing both parents in a relatively short period of his life, ending up living under a state park pier, when he gets visited by Jones, the old man with unique perspectives on all things life.

I highly recommend this book.

Paz,

Eradio