I am asking for everybody to pray for my friend Kim Banner Storm. She had a baby on
July 4, 2007 and has been hospitalized with a major breast infection that has been antibiotic resistent the last 3 days. She has been very sick with 104 degree fevers and they are trying to get the infection under control. I thought this would be a good way to get a prayer circle going. Thanks for your help, Manda
Friday, July 27, 2007
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Contentment in All Things
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7
Anxiety is rampant in America. Worries about the stock market, terrorism, the devaluing dollar and a litany of other unnerving issues make headlines on 24/7 cable news networks. It is difficult to avoid but how should we react to it when we do.
Me, I prepare for ways to overcome these potential crises. I do this in three ways:
· Solid storehouse of foods and water to withstand a sustained interruption of normal services.
· Keep some cash around in case the ATM and credit card machines don’t work.
· Most importantly, I build on my personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Relying on Him to guide me in the other two efforts above.
The writer of Philippians has it right. We must be ready to be content in any circumstances. Regardless of any preparation, life has a way of throwing a curve ball at you. It is our responses to these curves that separate the believer from those who rely on Man to sustain them.
As we fondly mull over our memories of Tita, we all should recognize that she always knew that everything would work out okay. I know that there was plenty of anxiety over money, bills and enough time for everything. But in the end she let go and let God help her through it all. Most times that I saw her, she appeared to be content in her situation.
She had a strong prayer life, was thankful for what she did have and was able to find peace. In the end, God granted her eternal peace starting at the place she loved most – outside on her back porch.
We should each find our own “back porch” and go there often to pray and praise God regardless of our situation!
Monday, July 23, 2007
Hello Everyone
I found this picture and thought I'd share it with everyone.
My mom left it to me to figure out how to contribute to the blog.
My mom that previously checked her email maybe twice a day has now become an obsessive compulsive blog-checking monster.
i have you guys to blame for that!
just kidding---I think this is a great idea.
Love you guys!
-SAM-
Thursday, July 19, 2007
The Coming Days
Ephesians 4:1-6
1. As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5. one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6.one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
Time is very short and there is so much to do! We have a lot of baptisms to complete, forgiveness to ask and time to spend with each other before the coming days are fulfilled.
This all sounds so difficult to complete but one Saturday & Sunday will do it. During the ceremony for Rosalie it dawned on me that we have just begun our journey of renewed Faith.
Tita and I discussed (as most of you did) the need to draw close to The Lord because the times are changing. Didi and I talked about it while languishing in the sun between the death and burial of Tita. The answer is always the same: Jesus is Lord and we need to acknowledge that!
Collectively we have endured four deaths within the last 60 days. That is a lot of death for one family regardless of your unit of measure. But what do all these deaths mean? What can we gain from the experience?
The key lesson that continues to permeate my Spirit is that we must live in the present. We must embrace every day as our last and love strongly the folks that we hold dear. But what does “Love Strongly” mean?
It means “loving completely without complete understanding!” Tita had many faults as we all do but she did understand the value of unconditional love. We each found ways to disagree with her but through it all she always found a way to love us. It took some growth on her part and some of our own but we always managed to meet in the middle.
I think that is what Love becomes: the ability to forget self and recognize the face of God in others without sacrificing our beliefs and morals.
Each day I want to pick up the phone and call Tita to rave about a particular topic but I now spread the burden across many folks instead. The wheel and spokes that we embraced in the past with Tita has now become a wide area network of love and understanding previously not realized. Let us all embrace the change and see the fruit of our efforts.
The pictures in the previous post are only the beginning of a family renewed by tragedy.
Peace to All.
1. As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5. one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6.one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
Time is very short and there is so much to do! We have a lot of baptisms to complete, forgiveness to ask and time to spend with each other before the coming days are fulfilled.
This all sounds so difficult to complete but one Saturday & Sunday will do it. During the ceremony for Rosalie it dawned on me that we have just begun our journey of renewed Faith.
Tita and I discussed (as most of you did) the need to draw close to The Lord because the times are changing. Didi and I talked about it while languishing in the sun between the death and burial of Tita. The answer is always the same: Jesus is Lord and we need to acknowledge that!
Collectively we have endured four deaths within the last 60 days. That is a lot of death for one family regardless of your unit of measure. But what do all these deaths mean? What can we gain from the experience?
The key lesson that continues to permeate my Spirit is that we must live in the present. We must embrace every day as our last and love strongly the folks that we hold dear. But what does “Love Strongly” mean?
It means “loving completely without complete understanding!” Tita had many faults as we all do but she did understand the value of unconditional love. We each found ways to disagree with her but through it all she always found a way to love us. It took some growth on her part and some of our own but we always managed to meet in the middle.
I think that is what Love becomes: the ability to forget self and recognize the face of God in others without sacrificing our beliefs and morals.
Each day I want to pick up the phone and call Tita to rave about a particular topic but I now spread the burden across many folks instead. The wheel and spokes that we embraced in the past with Tita has now become a wide area network of love and understanding previously not realized. Let us all embrace the change and see the fruit of our efforts.
The pictures in the previous post are only the beginning of a family renewed by tragedy.
Peace to All.
The Tita Tailgate
Here are the photos from the "Tita Tailgate" in Navasota, Texas. As you can see, the Powell and Baylor Plots were awash in a Sea of Burnt Orange. I truly believe that Mom, Daddy Rufe, Mimi and the rest of the family were right there with us enjoying the celebration and we in turn were letting them know that everything is going to be alright.
Monday, July 16, 2007
We Put The "Fun" In Funeral
“Ya’ll did what?” was the response of numerous co-workers when I explained the graveside tailgate on Friday. As I described the scene of 26 people above ground and 7 below ground toasting and celebrating Tita’s trip to Heaven, people were in awe. “I have never heard of anyone doing that“ would be the same response. However, at the same time you could see the smiles on their faces and fascination of what kind of faith you have to have to do such a thing!
I further elaborated on the UT chairs, sandwiches and beer under the “pecan” trees. Wow was the response. The sudden breeze that brought some relief to the humidity, the young cousins “cruising the graveyard” and the atmosphere of celebration brought great closure to me and made me know that everything will be okay.
My friend Jon said exactly what Manda coined on Sunday “Ya’ll definitely put the “Fun” in Funeral.” I think we all can wear that badge of courage starting on Monday at Porting-Loring. Think about it…we have been laughing for a solid week and crying in between.
Those who went to the service on Thursday intimated that they had never been to a fun and celebratory funeral before and were truly touched by it. That is a testament to a family that is solid in its collective skin (co-dependency included) and faith. These are moments that change lives.
Tita would be proud of all of us!
Peace to all.
Ross
I further elaborated on the UT chairs, sandwiches and beer under the “pecan” trees. Wow was the response. The sudden breeze that brought some relief to the humidity, the young cousins “cruising the graveyard” and the atmosphere of celebration brought great closure to me and made me know that everything will be okay.
My friend Jon said exactly what Manda coined on Sunday “Ya’ll definitely put the “Fun” in Funeral.” I think we all can wear that badge of courage starting on Monday at Porting-Loring. Think about it…we have been laughing for a solid week and crying in between.
Those who went to the service on Thursday intimated that they had never been to a fun and celebratory funeral before and were truly touched by it. That is a testament to a family that is solid in its collective skin (co-dependency included) and faith. These are moments that change lives.
Tita would be proud of all of us!
Peace to all.
Ross
Saturday, July 14, 2007
One Week Today
Fellow Drummers, tomorrow makes one week that Tita has gone to be with The Lord and we still are wondering why?
This is not an easy question to answer but it is one that we must accept: God is in control and we must choose to abide in his love and his timing for all things.
Tita loved us all completely and without reservation. I knew that no matter what my circumstance she would listen and try to help if she could but I knew that there was always unconditional love on the other end of the conversation (unless I said I loved Hillary C.). I didn't always take the advice she gave but I always appreciated that she took the time to give it.
Tita went through a lot of trials and many hardships but through it all she gained a strength of faith and relationship with the Lord that always seemed to comfort her. I wanted to call her several times today to rave about politics, discuss cream peas and tell her how much I miss my children while they are gone to Deleware. Each time I found myself wondering WTF?
And then I remembered "There are so many of us" and I reached out to several of you. The key is to reach out to those who love you and share in the love that we all hold dear!
My hope is that we continue to abide in love of The Lord and celebrate the "Ten thangs I loved about Tita"
Peace be to All.
Ross
This is not an easy question to answer but it is one that we must accept: God is in control and we must choose to abide in his love and his timing for all things.
Tita loved us all completely and without reservation. I knew that no matter what my circumstance she would listen and try to help if she could but I knew that there was always unconditional love on the other end of the conversation (unless I said I loved Hillary C.). I didn't always take the advice she gave but I always appreciated that she took the time to give it.
Tita went through a lot of trials and many hardships but through it all she gained a strength of faith and relationship with the Lord that always seemed to comfort her. I wanted to call her several times today to rave about politics, discuss cream peas and tell her how much I miss my children while they are gone to Deleware. Each time I found myself wondering WTF?
And then I remembered "There are so many of us" and I reached out to several of you. The key is to reach out to those who love you and share in the love that we all hold dear!
My hope is that we continue to abide in love of The Lord and celebrate the "Ten thangs I loved about Tita"
Peace be to All.
Ross
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