The Monk Series Finale is coming in a few short days. I cannot believe it. I enjoyed Friday nights with Mr. Monk. Ah...another good, clean television show coming to an end.

I thought it was ending last season because of all the rumors that I heard. But, we were able to get a few more episodes in. It's really coming to an end this time. Mr. Monk will solve Trudy's murder on Friday. Last week, he opened her gift  (the one he has been holding onto for 12 years), and found a tape from Trudy inside. Indeed the end is near - the countdown, underway.

I'm disappointed that the show is ending but I also know that there is an end to all things. Ecclesiastes tells us for everything there is a season. A time to be born and a time to die. For this great television show, there was a time to premier and a time to end.

So, tell me, did you watch MONK? What was your favorite episode? You can reply here or send me a tweet - I'm @bolmin.  

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day! Whooooohooooooo! I love Thanksgiving. There are no gifts to buy. Nothing materialistic to do. Just enjoy family - that's the order for the day. Sure there is the whole cooking thing that has to be done. I love that part though.

I have been blessed to participate in several Thanksgiving Days. Thank you, Lord. Generally, we have adhered to the traditional set-up of visiting local family. But, I have also had the distinct priviledge of celebrating Thanksgiving in the Cayman Islands with my good friend Kristie and her family. Now, Kristie L.O.V.E.S. to cook. And she's good at it too!

That Thanksgiving, I was a little apprehensive about breaking with my traditional routine. I traveled out of the country of Thanksgiving Day. I was so exhausted - but hadn't cooked anything - all I did was wake up at the crack of dawn before the roosters... and sit at airports...and sit on planes. But, there was the adrenaline of the excitement that comes with seeing my friend Kristie - if you knew her, you'd understand. She is my dynamo! Then, because Kristie and her family are such hospitable people, there were other families there ready to have Thanksgiving Dinner with us too. What a Thanksgiving Day!! Definately a break from my norm, but it was wonderful - a welcome change.

This year, although I'll be local, I'm adding something new to the routine. There will be four house visits this year instead of my normal three. And, I will, out of sheer courtesy, eat at every single house! (LOL). And the experience will be fantastic - not because of any extravagant gift, but because of the priceless gift - spending quality time with people that I love and who love me in return - no matter what. These people have my back, love me in spite of, and pray for me on a regular basis. These people are my family. Thank you Lord!

• I thank God that I have family and friends that know what Thanksgiving is really all about. No one has mentioned "Black Friday" all week - we've been talking about getting together and laughing it up!
• I thank God for everything that He does - for everything that He is.
• And, I thank Him for placing me in a family that despite everything - my shortcomings and my wrongs ('cause I do have a few), love me unconditionally. Real love is priceless. My thanksgiving for the Lord is endless.

I pray that you will have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day. That you will look to the Lord and thank Him for all that He is doing in your life and in the lives of your family and friends.

Because it's Thanksgiving week, I am writing about things I am thankful for. Monday, I spoke about being grateful that my Pastor has returned after a 17-week absence. Now, today, on a lighter topic, I will talk about my godson, Chunks.

Of course, that's not his real name, but I'm telling you, he's a mess. He is 32 lbs, 2.5 feet tall and almost 18 months. I know. He's a big baby but he's so special to me.

When I talking to his mom,  I could hear him in the background saying "Mommie!"- He wanted an apple. Which of course, he could pronounce the word "apple." He eats all kinds of apples - red, green - sweet or tart - doesn't matter. He'll eat them. And, he still likes learning words. He says "elbow" and a few other things now that he wasn't saying before.

And, with his cute self, if you ask him to point to his nose, he'll point to his mouth. And if you ask him to point to his mouth, he'll point to his nose! ADORABLE. He'll get it right later - maybe next week, but for now, he's in the ballpark and that's all that matters. How adorable is he? Well, not being biased or anything, (yea, right) he's perfect! My little fella. I love him and I thank God for his life. I pray that God will continue to bless him and nurture him. And, I pray that he will love the Lord and come to Christ at an early age - that God will watch over and protect him, and keep him in all his ways.

What about you? Do you have or know of some little person that you could thank the Lord for? 

I heard that it could all be going down on Sunday - the long awaited return of my Pastor to the pulpit. So, I started praying and asking God to please let it be so. I'm happy to report that it was so - our Pastor came back! It had been a 17-week departure - and God brought him back right on time. Some may say it was too long but I say that God's timing is perfect. It was right on time according to God's calendar.

I knew it would not be too much longer when our First Lady came back. She was a sight for sore eyes. Her presence encouraged me to know that everything was indeed alright. All along, the congregation received reports on the health of our Pastor letting us know that he was doing okay. But seeing her was the proof for me. Seeing our First Lady looking so happy and healthy let me know that everything was alright. I thanked God then for her coming back and I thank God for her now. I thank God that she is a wife - a real one - that lives up to her vows - for better or for worse, in sickness and in health. To me, she is wonderful! We are a blessed church to have her in our midst.

Sunday was extra special. The Pastor and First Lady were back and the church was lively and full of worship. I really can't express my gratitude to God for the great things I know He has done in all of us during this experience. I can't thank Him enough for returning the First family back to us in good health and in happiness. They came in and walked down the center aisle, hand-in-hand. Beautiful. As one.

In a word, I am grateful. 

Well, maybe a few more words: thankful, happy, expectant (of the great things that God will show us), blessed.

I am grateful for our Pastor and First Lady. I pray that God will continue to bless them both and through this experience that He will draw them even closer to Himself and each other - like never before!  I pray that you are grateful as well for your head of church. In this week of preparation as we get ready to celebrate Thanksgiving, I pray that you will pray a prayer of thankfulness for your church leadership, particularly for your Pastor and family.

John P. Kee's "I Do Worship" has been in my spirit for about a week now. When I was preparing my message last week, it kept coming back into my mind - to the point that I got on iTunes and downloaded it so that I could have an authentic copy of the song.

"I do worship" is a bold statement. One worth thinking about. Can you say that you DO worship Him for His goodness and His glory; for the joy inside His story; for the peace that He gives; for the freedom that He gives? Again, it's worth thinking about. Here's a video from YouTube that shows the group performing "I Do Worship." I hope you enjoy it!

Seems like everywhere I turn, there is news coverage on Shaniya. I wish there wasn't because I wish that she was still alive. With every detail that continues to come out in this murder, I feel sick. It turns my stomach to know that there are people in this world who think it is proper to engage in sexual activities with a five-year old. This is a praying time - we live in a sin-sick world.

Little Shaniya was a beautiful girl. She looked happy - and I pray that for the time that she had here on this Earth, that she was happy. But, then I hear about the cigarette burns that marked her body. Then I see video of her being carried by a man whose intent does not seem so good. It makes me wonder about her last days - her last hours.

And then I think about how she was discarded like trash - just dumped in a wooded area and left there. How thoughtless! How careless! How cruel! Someone took her life from her - and then threw her away.

I can only pray that justice will prevail on this side of Heaven. I can only hope that the legal system gets it right this time. I know that in Heaven, God has already taken care of this. I know that vengeance belongs to the Lord. But, my flesh wants a little justice now - for Shaniya. So, I am praying that God will intercede in this case. That He will give the investigators wisdom and discernment that they may be able to do what is necessary to catch and convict this sin-sick killer. And then I am praying for the emotional wounds this senseless murder has caused to Shaniya's family members as well as those in her community who are tracking the events. I hope you will pray too!

On Sunday, I had the opportunity to preach at my home church. What a privilege it was and I was blessed by the experience. One of the things I asked the congregation is something that I would like to ask you. What are you doing with your life?

In the anchor points of your life - your birth date and your death date, will it be known that you believed in the Lord? Does your life show any appreciation, gratitude and love for the Lord Jesus? These are things that I asked that should be pondered by us all.

And if we answer "yes" to these questions, what is the sign? We need to show some sign that we believe what we say that we believe.

If we say that we believe our God is holy and righteous - then our actions ought to reflect that belief. Meaning, if He is holy and righteous, then as His followers, we too need to be holy and righteous to the degree that we can on this side of Heaven. That means that we need to get into the Word and learn about Who we say we believe. We need to be students of the Bible and lovers of mankind. We can't love the Lord and not do right by others. Those two things don't agree.

Begin thinking about what your life has been composed of so far - your dash between the dates, so to speak. Does your life glorify God? If you can honestly answer "yes" - then great. Keep up the good work. But if you can't honestly say "yes", then start today by giving your life to Christ. If you have any questions about the free gift of salvation, feel free to contact me here.

You know what I like about Extreme Makeover Home Edition?

I like it's human value. This show is about real people with real stories, getting a bit of relief. It's just that simple. And sometimes, we need to hear some good news. I believe the show is successful because it encourages us to keep hope alive. Visually, every week, we can see how someone's down situation was turned into a positive.

Then you have a great host and co-laborer like Ty Pennington leading the effort. Seriously, how can you stay down with Ty around? Him and that megaphone, hand-in-hand, brings a smile to everyone's face (as they cover their ears of course.)

The only down side to this is that it only comes on once a week. Which makes sense for their program. You'll get no arguments from me there. In fact, you'll get no arguments from me at all in reference to the show. I just want to point out one thing. We cannot depend on this show, or any other show, which comes on at a certain time on a certain day to be our sole source - or should I say "soul" source - of inspiration and encouragement. That's too much pressure for one show to handle. You would come up empty every time if this show or any others was your sole/"soul" source.

I want to encourage you to turn to a "soul" source for your encouragement on a daily basis. It does not matter what time, this "soul" source is always available. The source that I reference is your Bible. That's the source that you need to turn to for your hope and encouragement. That should be your priority and your "go to". And shows like this great one, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, should then be a supplement to let you see that there are still people in the world willing to make a difference in the lives of others.

I pray that your study of the Scriptures this week will make a difference in the lives of people in your community.


Image from: http://blogs.fayobserver.com/faytoz/files/2008/07/ty-pennington-the-git.jpg

Heeyyy! Welcome to my blog - I'm sporting a new custom design by EightCrazy Design and I hope you'll like it. I think this design matches the new direction of the blog. The way you'll see it may vary on Safari and FireFox vs Internet Explorer. The previous two feature rounded corners for the columns. Everything else should essentially be the same.

She’s okay. Praise the Lord! She’s okay.

My godson’s mother is stationed at Fort Hood. In light of all the drama that took place there yesterday, I thought I would update you all via my blog to let you know that she was in another part of the base, away from what happened.

So, now, we direct our attention to the injured and the families of those killed. No one really knows the thoughts that are running through their minds this morning, but God knows. He knows how to speak to their every concern this morning. He knows how to turn something destructive into something redemptive.

So, as we direct our prayers toward Fort Hood, let’s remember the injured and the families of those killed. Let’s embrace that entire community through prayer to God, the Father. He is able to turn tragedy to triumph.

Thursday, November 05, 2009
Wisdom Justified

But wisdom is justified by all her children. (Luke 7:35)

The world is full of “experts.” There are people everywhere who want to convince you of the wisdom of their opinion. Yet God says that it is not the one who declares his viewpoint the most loudly or vociferously who is the wisest, but the one who is vindicated over time.

Wisdom is not proven by argument or debate. Wisdom is proven over time. Some people adamantly proclaim that their opinion is best. Regardless of how convincingly these people defend their viewpoint, time is the best judge of their wisdom. The result of a practice proves its validity, not how loudly it is promoted. When you seek to obey what God has told you, you will sometimes meet resistance and criticism from others who disagree with the wisdom of your actions. Your immediate response may be the urge to vindicate yourself. However, if you wait patiently, time will reveal the wisdom of your actions far better than you could through argument.

Through the ages, the wisdom found in God’s Word has been tested and proven true. It is critical that you measure everything you hear against the Scriptures. Trends in psychology and philosophy come and go, but God’s Word is timeless. Whenever you share an opinion in counseling someone else, make sure that it comes from the Scripture and not merely from your best thinking. As long as you base your life choices on the Word of God, time will be your defender and will validate the wisdom of your choices. If, over time, you clearly see you are wrong, ask God’s forgiveness and seek a fresh word from God through the Scripture. Then obey that word and watch to see God confirm His wisdom in your life.

Here's a link to the devotionals in total. Perhaps you'll bookmark this site and follow up with them as the Lord directs. http://www.blackaby.org/devarchive.asp

Make it a good Thursday!

It happened. You know my friend that has been terminally ill? She has gone home to be with the Lord now. I want to thank all of you for your prayers. Please continue to pray for the family and close friends. They will need your support through prayer.

Through all of this - I’m reminded that God is still good. I’m having a really tough week, but God is still so good! I just have to give Him praise! He knew what kind of week this would be, with death, deadlines and duties. And, He has been faithful. So very faithful.

Thank you Lord!!!

What is God doing for you this week?

Happy Monday!!

Thanks to everyone that stopped by She Seeks last week. Boy did I have a good time over there! It felt good to read the comments and emails that came my way as a result of that article.

As you may know, rejection is something near and dear to my heart. I don’t want the people of God to waste time lamenting over dead things. If someone is too blind to realize your worth, whether it be in a male/female relationship, on your job, or some social setting, it is likely a blessing that they are so blind.

Too many times we want to run out and help them out by getting them the latest “see-me-for-who-I-am” spectacles. I'd prefer you do the opposite. Let them go. Let them be. God has a way of bringing to the forefront those who you should be in your circle. So, let God do the choosing. It’s better that way!

Random Thoughts:

This week is shaping up to be really busy, but I will be posting more. In fact, last week, I had planned to post more but alas, the best laid plans... things just didn’t work out.

If you think about it this week, please pray for my terminally ill friend. I visited with her this weekend and she’s in the hands of the Lord now, like never before. Pray for her family - for peace and strength.