A Review of a Children's Book

If your looking for a great book to read to your school aged child, I would love to recommend The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo.

I love to read a chapter book to my children. They each have a wide variety of chapter books to choose from because I purchase them through the school scholastic. Because I have a 6 year old girl and a 9 year old boy, there choice in books are quite different so I read to them separately. I only read a chapter maybe two a night to keep them wanting more the next day. They, and I will admit, me too enjoy the stories so much. But this book about Edward Tulane is really special. Here is an excerpt:

Once, there was a china rabbit who was loved by a little girl. The rabbit went on an ocean journey and fell overboard and was rescued by a fisherman. He was buried under garbage and unburied by a dog. He traveled for a long time with the hoboes and worked for a short time as a scarecrow.

Once, there was a rabbit who loved a little girl and watched her die. The rabbit danced on the streets of Memphis. His head was broken open in a diner and was put together again by a doll mender. And the rabbit swore that he would not make the mistake of loving again.

Once there was a rabbit who danced in a garden in springtime with the daughter of the woman who had loved him at the beginning of his journey. The girl swung the rabbit as she danced in circles. Sometimes, they went so fast, the two of them, that it seemed as if they were flying. Sometimes, it seemed as if they both had wings.

Once, oh marvelous once, there was a rabbit who found his way home.

At the end of this book, I was so touched by this china rabbit, Edward, that I could not hold back the tears streaming down my face. There are few illustrations because it's the storyline that captivates you and will also captivate your child. My daughter often inquired about Edward during the day looking forward to hearing about what else would happen to him. This book accomplished what I wanted which is to give her a love for reading.

Lisa Fraley

My God is Faithful

Faithful according to Webster's Dictionary means steadfast in affection or allegiance, loyal, firm in adherence to promises or in observance of duties.

While I was doing my reading in the Old Testament this week many verses jumped out at me and they all pointed and reminded me about God's faithfulness. For example in Deuteronomy 7:9-10 "Therefore know that the Lord your God, he is God. The faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love him and keep his commandments...." Also in Deuteronomy 4: 29-31 "...and you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in distress and all these things come upon you in the latter days, when you turn to the Lord your God and obey his voice (for the Lord your God is a merciful God), He will not forsake you nor destroy you, nor forget the covenant of your fathers which he swore to them."

This was made evident in my life this week as I received five new piano/violin students. To give you a little background, we surprised my in-laws with a vacation for their forty years of marriage. As part of the surprise, it was going to be a family vacation for everyone. (My mother-in law has been wanting to do something together for a while now). However since I stay at home, finances for a big family vacation put a lot of pressure on us. We have been saving for a year to try and get everything we would need. The trip is supposed to be at the end of April and I have been feeling the pressure. Once again God just reminded me that he is faithful in every way. While a vacation may seem like something unnecessary, God knew how much it meant to my mother-in-law and my family and he provided with a needed boost to our family income just in the nick of time! Praise God for his faithfulness!

After taking all of this into account, my Bible reading in Deuteronomy reminded me that I had a responsibility. "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house when you walk by the way when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." Deuteronomy 6:6-9 When God shows us his faithfulness don't hold it in...shout it from the rooftops, talk about it with your children....they need to know about a God that loves us and cares for us....they need to understand on whom we depend!

Janine DiGiovanni

What's Up for March!

Tuesday, March 9 Topic Meeting- Join us at Bethel Assembly of God in Martinsburg, WV in the Mace building, room 109 from 9:45 - 11:45 AM for a time of brunch, prayer, and discussion. Childcare is provided.

Saturday, March 13 Bowling at Pikeside Bowling Alley in Martinsburg, WV from 9:30 - 11:30 AM. Bring just $2 per child, ages 5-12, to go towards BGMC. If you are planning to attend, please sign up at Bethel Assembly of God or contact Lisa Fraley.

Tuesday, March 23 Topic Meeting- Join us at Bethel Assembly of God in Martinsburg, WV in the Mace building, room 109 from 9:45 - 11:45 AM for a time of brunch, prayer, and discussion. Childcare is provided.

Saturday, March 27 "Amazon Adventure" Children's Day at the Mall at the Martinsburg Mall from 10 AM - 3 PM. There will be hands-on activities for young children by local organizations that provide services to children and families. There will be a dinosaur puppet show performed three times during the day in addition to presentations by local youth and performers.
**Mom's Connection will be setting up a table to hand out information about our group, inviting moms to join us from our community, and providing a craft for children. If you are interested in helping with this outreach, please volunteer as soon as possible.**

Tuesday, March 30 Easter Party- Join us at Bethel Assembly of God in Martinsburg, WV in the gym at 10 AM for games, crafts, and fun for you and your child(ren). Then stay and share lunch together at noon. A sign up sheet for lunch will be provided at the 3/9 topic meeting.

Perseverance

Recently on a Sunday morning my daughter didn't want to go to church. Her big brother wasn't feeling well and was allowed to stay home so of course she wanted to as well. I encouraged her to come with me and told her that when we feel like going the least is when we need to go the most. That day at church she was a great helper to the children's pastor and received some Lifesaver Gummy's. It's one of her favorite little treats. She was so happy. Then I reminded her how she didn't want to go that morning and therefore almost missed the blessing God had for her (the gummy's). It was the perfect opportunity for me to talk to her about perseverance. How we need to persevere in doing what we know is right even when we don't feel like it.

Perseverance is not one of those things we like to do. We can see why when we know the definition: steady persistence in a course of action, purpose, or a state in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement. We would rather things come easily, however life is about persevering. When we are only babies, we have to persevere to even take our first steps. It takes us anywhere between 9-18 months to accomplish it. Then life snowballs with more and more steps towards the future. We have to stay the course through school, our jobs, our marriage, and child-rearing. We must keep moving forward pressing through the difficulties because anything that really matters is worth the effort!

Let's think about what's hard at times but when we keep going has a huge payoff. Childbirth is really hard but in the end we hold a precious life in our arms. To care for and raise up a child in this world is challenging but we have the hope to see that child grown one day living their life successfully. Working in a specific field for many years takes daily persistence but will yield a retirement fund and rest in our golden years. Living for Jesus Christ is daily laying down our own wants for a better way that can lead many in this world to God which will reap a reward here on Earth and for all eternity. But doing any of these things does not come easily.

The Bible says, "Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; goodness, knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance...For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2 Peter 1:5-8) Having perseverance keeps us from being ineffective and unproductive for the Kingdom of God! Why is that? Because it takes a persistent course of action to seek God every day of our lives. We can't just live life haphazardly, but we must live it with purpose and perseverance moving towards a goal.

When do we need to persevere? It's different for each of us. We all have different strengths and weaknesses that make some things harder. For example, for some of us sleepy heads, it's hard to get up early. We would do anything for an extra few minutes of sleep. If you compare that person to an early bird, which one perseveres the most when getting up early to read their Bible or pray? But to persevere is knowing those areas of struggle and working through them anyway. It's encouraging one another to keep on keeping on!! "Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus.." (Hebrews 12:1-2)

Blessings,
Lisa

Barbecued Chicken

Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 (2 1/2 to 3 pound) broiler-fryer, cut up
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup catsup
1/4 cup water
1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Combine first 4 ingredients; mix well. Dredge chicken in flour mixture. Pour butter into a 13 X 9 X 2-inch baking pan. Arrange chicken in pan, skin side down. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Combine remaining ingredients in a medium saucepan; mix well. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes.
Remove chicken from oven, turn; spoon sauce over chicken. Bake an additional 30 minutes. Yield 4 servings.
Recipe by Sus-Sue Hartstern, Louisville, Kentucky.
From "Southern Living 1983 Annual Recipes Cookbook" Copyright 1983 by Oxmoor House, Inc.

This is a recipe Tina Burton made recently and wanted to share with us! Thanks Tina!

Mom's Game Night

**Locatation change**
Monday, February 22 Mom's Game Night- Join us at Bethel Assembly of God in Martinsburg, WV in the Mace building, room 109 at 6 pm. Bring an appetizer and drink to share with others. Let's relax and have fun with friends as we play some games!!

Upcoming Events

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men." John 1:1-4

Thursday, February 18 Younglives Ministry meets at Westview Baptist Church in Martinburg, WV from 6-8pm. They provide a meal, teach a life skill, connect with a mentor, and hear the gospel of Jesus Christ. As our service project we are providing the meal for their group meeting.
Thank you to all the moms contributing a portion of the a meal and for those volunteering to help set up and clean up! The menu for them will be spaghetti with meatballs, salad, garlic bread, brownies, and cookies! Yum!

Monday, February 22 Mom's Game Night at Amanda Dagostino's house at 6 pm. Bring an appetizer to share. If you need directions contact Amanda or Lisa Fraley.

Tuesday, February 23 Topic Meeting- Meet at Bethel Assembly of God in the Mace building, rm 109 at 9:45 am for a time of fellowship, prayer, and discussion! Childcare is provided.

A Deeper Fellowship

"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved me. Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me before the creation of the world. Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them" John 17:20-26

Recently I have had a burden for deeper fellowship. I interact with people all the time and have the privilege to talk to a wide variety of people. I have found that it is more comfortable for me to talk to some people more than others and that I tend to want to talk more to those I am comfortable with. This began to bother me . Why am I so uncomfortable talking to certain people in the family of God? I realized that I had decided ahead of time that some people were out of my league. This is to my discredit and I repented to God about it as soon as I realized it. I had allowed my insecurity to hinder me in my fellowship with other believers. Jesus prayed that we would be one as He and the Father are one (v. 22). That makes us a family. We know that the Lord desires us to be in unity, but sometimes the simplest of things can hinder us from having that deeper fellowship.

In the world their are dividing lines that people live by that keep them from ever being included in certain groups. There are those we consider out of our league, or those we consider beneath us and so we feel that we are to stay in the groups we have assigned ourselves to. This is not the way it should be in the body of Christ. The Lord wants to remove those dividing lines and make us "one". Jesus said that He has made the Father known to us and will continue to make Him known so that the Father's love for Him may be in us and that He may be in us (v.26). That says to me that Jesus wants us to have the love of the Father in us, so that we may be one with Him and so that His love may flow from inside of us to other believers and then out to the world. It is our love for one another that shows the world that we are His disciples. "Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples" (John 13:35). How can we hope to be affective witnesses to the communities around us when we don't know how to have that deeper fellowship with one another? When because of our insecurities we avoid talking with those that are not in our circle where we are comfortable. God makes it very simple for us, all it takes is just stepping out and shaking hands with or taking a few minutes to chat with those we don't know very well or taking notice of that new face we see in our church. By being intentional to show love in simple ways to those in the body of Christ, we make people feel accepted, giving them a sense of belonging, and drawing us closer together in unity. We model the love of Christ to unbelievers creating in them a thirst for the living water He offers. In the book Better Together by Rick Warren, he asks us a challenging question, "Your love for one another speaks volumes about God's love: How loud is your voice?

Kim Ratcliffe

Easy and Simple Recipe

Ingredients:
One can of the french-friend onions
(adjust this in comparison to how many breasts you are using)
Chicken breasts
egg

Directions:
1. Crush your french-friend onions so they become like bread crumbs
2. Dip your chicken in egg
3. Dip and coat in the french-fried onions
4. Put in a pan and bake

This is tasty and simple!
Janine DiGiovanni

Upcoming Events!!

"He who forms the mountains, creates the wind, and reveals his thoughts to man, he who turns dawn to darkness, and treads the high places of the earth- the Lord God Almighty is his name." (Amos 4:13)

Thursday, February 18 Younglives Ministry meets at Westview Baptist Church in Martinburg, WV from 6-8pm. They provide a meal, teach a life skill, connect with a mentor, and hear the gospel of Jesus Christ. As our service project we are providing the meal for their group meeting.

Monday, February 22 Mom's Game Night at Amanda Dagostino's house at 6 pm. Bring an appetizer to share. If you need directions contact Amanda or Lisa Fraley.

Tuesday, February 23 Topic Meeting- Meet at Bethel Assembly of God in the Mace building, rm 109 at 9:45 am for a time of fellowship, prayer, and discussion! Childcare is provided.

Meet....Marie Orr

Marie is probably one of the sweetest, most down-to-Earth, women I have ever met. I am very pleased to be able to feature her this month on the Mom's Connection blog.

Marie has been married to her husband, Bruce, for 12 years. They met when he was working as a bell-ringer for the Salvation Army outside of Food 4 Less, where she was working at the time. She was also attending Petra Worship Center and he came to church there one night. They have two little girls, Angelica (10) and Janice (4).

She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, going to church, and being a part of Mom's Connection. Her favorite thing about Mom's Connection is meeting and getting to know other Christian mothers, to share together, lift each other up in prayer, and spend time with one another. She says, " I have made some really great friends through Mom's Connection."
I asked her about some of her favorite things. She loves dolphins and anything to do with the ocean. She enjoys many different kinds of music, especially anything that expresses how she personally feels.

Marie's relationship with the Lord means everything to her. She said, "He has always been there for me, through my whole life, no matter what I have went through. He has always carried me through. He has truly blessed my life more than I can say."

Her favorite Bible passage is Matthew 6: 25-33.
"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

This section reminds her that there is nothing in life that she should worry about and that God will take care of everything.
　
Tina Burton

Start Over

When you've trusted Jesus and walked His way,
When you've felt His hand lead you day by day,
But your steps now take you another way,
Start over.

When you've made plans and they've gone awry,
When you've tried your best 'til there's no more try,
When you've failed yourself and you don't know why,
Start over.

When you've told your friends what you plan to do,
When you've trusted them but they didn't come through,
Now, you're all alone and it's up to you,
Start over.

When you've failed your kids and they're grown and gone,
When you've done your best but it turned out wrong,
And now your grandchildren have come along,
Start over.

When you've prayed to God so you know His will,
When you've prayed and prayed but you don't know still,
When you want to stop 'cause you've had your fill,
Start over.

When you think you're finished and want to quit,
When you've bottomed out in life's deepest pit,
When you've tried and tried to get out of it,
Start over.

When the year's been long and successes few,
When December comes and you're feeling blue,
God gives a January just so you can
Start over.

Starting over means victories won,
Starting over means a race well run,
Starting over means the Lord's "Well done."

Written by Woodrow Kroll

Meeting Cancellation

Our meeting on Tuesday, February 9 is cancelled due to snow and Berkeley County School Cancellation. Have a safe and fun-filled week!

This mom is reading...

Creative Correction: Extraordinary Ideas for Everyday Discipline by Lisa Whelchel.

The book is a great tool for getting ideas from Lisa Whelchel and other moms about how to deal with everyday life with children. I was able to use so many ideas from the book. It has a tool box after each one of the chapters to help you choose a tool that will best fit with what you might need an idea on for a certain situation.

What I love about the book is how Lisa used bible verses to find where God has given those “directions” to help you know how to raise your children and guild them in life. There is even a chapter called “Learning from the Ultimate Parent”. I would recommend this book to all parents. She is an outstanding writer and she makes the book fun to read. She has proposed a new bumper sticker that says, “My children aren't perfect but neither are yours.” She also has a website at www.creativecorrection.com.

Tamara Driscoll

My Feelings

Because if you acknowledge and confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and in your heart believe (adhere to, trust in, and rely on the truth) that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart a person believes (adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Christ) and so is justified (declared righteous, acceptable to God), and with the mouth he confesses (declares openly and speaks out freely his faith) and confirms [his] salvation. Romans 10:9-10

"But I can't help the way I feel," Angie moaned. Most of us hear this statement often. It means that the way the person feels is settled, and they believe they have to go with those feelings. It's like an unchallenged fact of life. We have feelings, and sometimes they are strong, but we get confused. We allow our feelings to determine our decisions and ultimately, our destiny. With that type of mindset, it means that if we feel discouraged, we are discouraged, if we feel victorious, we are victorious. It means that if we feel depressed, we must be depressed. Someone once said, "My feelings are emotions, they are not reality." In other words, just because we feel a certain way doesn't make that feeling a fact. It only means that we feel that way. We must learn to press past our feelings. Perhaps an example will help. Janet sells real estate, and when she makes a sale, she feels wonderful and successful. Last month she sold five upscale homes and made an excellent commission. This month she has sold only one, and she feels as if she's a failure. Is Janet a failure? No. It's just that on dark days, she feels that way; but that doesn't mean it's true.

Today I may not feel God at work in my life. But is that true, or is that the way I feel? I know many people who don't feel loved by God--that's how they feel, but it isn't the truth. The devil gains a stronghold in this area. If he can convince us that our feelings are reality, he has made great progress, and we are easily defeated. Years ago, I spoke in a church, and many people came up to me to tell me how my message had encouraged them. I beamed because I was still new in the ministry, and I really needed lots of compliments in order to feel successful. One man said, "I didn't agree with anything you said. You need to get your theology straight." And he walked away. Immediately discouragement overwhelmed me. I had tried hard to be God's instrument to the people, and I had failed. As I left the church, I thought about what had happened. At least fifty people had told me how my words blessed them. One man came to me with a negative message. How did I react? I believed the negative. I allowed his words to shift my thinking, and I convinced myself I had failed. I hadn't failed. I had listened to the wrong voice and allowed it to control my feelings. I determined that never again would I allow one negative voice to discourage me and make me feel that I had failed. Perhaps I had failed to help that man--and I couldn't do anything about it--but my teaching had touched many others. One woman had tears in her eyes when she told me that I had given her exactly the right word she needed to hear. I did something else that night. I reminded myself that what I experienced had been a negative feeling, but it had not been reality. I began to quote Bible verses, reminding myself that satan attacks us where we're weak and vulnerable. I was new to public speaking, and the man with the negative word knew that. I thought of Romans 10:9-10. We often quote these two verses when we speak to people about their salvation; however, the principle is there no matter what the subject. Paul says that we need to believe in our heart and confess with our lips. I stopped and said aloud, "God, I believe I am in Your service. I believe I did my best for You. I believe You used my words to bless many people. I do not have to listen to that one negative voice." Within minutes, I felt better. (See how quickly our feelings can change?) Reality hadn't changed, I had. I refused to allow negative, wrong thinking to turn me from reality.

Battlefield of the Mind Devotional by Joyce Meyer

Events for February

"Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail...From whose womb comes the ice? Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens when the waters become hard as stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen?..." Job 38:22-30

**Event canceled**Friday, February 5 Family Movie Night at Bethel Assembly of God in the Mace building, room 209 beginning 7 pm. Bring our your whole family, your favorite movie snack, and drink. Popcorn will be provided. we will be watching the Disney-Pixar movie "Up".

Tuesday, February 9 Topic Meeting-Meet at Bethel Assembly of God in the Mace building, rm 109 at 9:45 am for a time of fellowship, prayer, and discussion! Childcare is provided.

Monday, February 22 Mom's Game Night at Amanda Dagostino's house at 6 pm. Bring an appetizer to share. If you need directions contact Amanda or Lisa Fraley.

Tuesday, February 23 Topic Meeting- Meet at Bethel Assembly of God in the Mace building, rm 109 at 9:45 am for a time of fellowship, prayer, and discussion! Childcare is provided.

Be Who You Are

"But by the grace of God I am what I am..."(1 Corinthians 15:10).

"And stop assuming an outward expression that does not come from within you and is not representative of what you are in your inner being but is patterned after this age; but change your outward expression to one that comes from within and is representative of your inner being, by the renewing of your mind, resulting in your putting to the test what is the will of God, the good and well-pleasing and complete will, and having found that it meets specifications, place your approval upon it. God is a brilliant Creator. He only makes originals -- not copies." (Romans 12:2)

According to Ephesians 2:10, you are God's work of art. God made you unique. So be all that God created you to be. Don't try to be someone else. Don't try to be an ear in the Body of Christ, if God made you a foot. Just be yourself. This does not mean that you cannot improve, or grow. Growth is part of God's plan. And we can certainly learn from others, and imitate excellent actions and attitudes. But too many people are insecure and hope to gain acceptance from others by conforming to what they think will make them popular or successful -- even though they hate it and know they are not being real.

The Bible reveals many truths about who we are once we receive Jesus Christ. We actually receive new life, a new standing with God, and new ability. As you feed the Word of God into your thinking, that new life will be able to manifest more and more.

SAY THIS: I am what I am by the grace of God. I will be what God made me and fulfill His plan for me.

A devotion from www.aDevotion.org.

Our Retirement Party

Recently I went to a family member's retirement party. My uncle was retiring from the Martinsburg Fire Station. During the evening I heard about the lives he saved in his years of service as a paramedic and fireman. I heard other's commend him on his great achievements in his profession rising to the place of Captain. Many thanked him for making a personal difference in their lives as a friend and coworker. The entire event was to honor him. This was the first retirement party I had ever been to and was so touched by this outpouring of love and gratitude.

Because so many family members and friends were there, I was saturated with thoughts of my father. He had no retirement party. He made a difference in so many people's lives but never received the accolades here on Earth. I thought about my own service to God hoping one day I will accomplish something of equal value. However I, like my dad and so many others, will never be given a retirement party. For one reason we don't ever retire from doing the Lord's work. For another reason, our achievements for the Lord do not always get recognized here. Sometimes it's the same feeling being a parent. From the moment our children are born we give up so much to give them everything without any acknowledgement.

The Bible tells us that one day we will be recognized in Eternity. "For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done" (Matthew 16:27). We will be recognized for all we have done to further the gospel when it really matters. There will be souls in heaven because we told them about Jesus Christ. This work we are doing does not receive the honor here on Earth but one day the Creator of Heaven and Earth will acknowledge all we have done. And even in parenting we will one day reap a harvest. We might have to wait until our children are grown and become parents themselves but they will understand one day. We have the hope that our "children will rise up and call us blessed" (Proverbs 31:28.)

In order for us to one day receive this honor, we must keep doing the work of the Lord. Sometimes we want to throw in the towel but we must keep going. We are faced with adversity but must be over comers with God's help. Ten years ago my uncle had back surgery and had a long road to recovery. The retirement party wouldn't have come if he had stopped short. Instead he continued to the next goal, Captain. That's what we must do. We must move to the next goal God sets before us. We all want to hear God say to us, "well done, good and faithful servant" (Matthew 25:21). Our retirement party is for all eternity. Jesus said, "In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am" (John 14:2-3).

Blessings,
Lisa