I saw you hug your purse closer to you in the grocery store line. But you
didn't see me put an extra $10.00 in the collection plate last Sunday.
I saw you pull your child closer when we passed each other on the sidewalk.
But you didn't see me playing Santa at the local Mall.
I saw you change your mind about going into the restaurant when you saw my
bike parked out front. But you didn't see me attending a meeting to raise
more money for the hurricane relief.
I saw you roll up your window and shake your head when I rode by. But you
didn't see me riding behind you when you flicked your cigarette butt out the
car window.
I saw you frown at me when I smiled at your children. But you didn't see me,
when I took time off from work to run toys to the homeless.
I saw you stare at my long hair. But you didn't see me and my friends cut ten
inches off for Locks of Love.
I saw you roll your eyes at our Leather jackets and gloves. But you didn't see
me and my brothers donate our old ones to those that had none.
I saw you look in fright at my tattoos. But you didn't see me cry as my
children were born or have their name written over and in my heart.
I saw you change lanes while rushing off to go somewhere. But you didn't see
me going home to be with my family.
I saw you complain about how loud and noisy our bikes can be. But you didn't
see me when you were changing the CD and drifted into my lane.
I saw you yelling at your kids in the car. But you didn't see me pat my
child's hands knowing she was safe behind me.
I saw you reading the newspaper or map as you drove down the road. But you
didn't see me squeeze my wife's leg when she told me to take the next turn.
I saw you race down the road in the rain. But you didn't see me get soaked to
the skin so my son could have the car to go on his date.
I saw you run the yellow light just to save a few minutes of time. But you
didn't see me trying to turn right.
I saw you cut me off because you needed to be in the lane I was in. But you
didn't see me leave the road.
I saw you, waiting impatiently for my friends to pass. But you didn't see me.
I wasn't there.
I saw you go home to your family. But you didn't see me. Because I died that
day you cut me off.
I was just a biker. A person with friends and a family. But you didn't see me.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
Work Out Your Own Salvation????
Philippians 2:12-13
KJV-Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of [his] good pleasure.
NKJV-Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
NLT-Dearest friends, you were always so careful to follow my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away you must be even more careful to put into action God's saving work in your lives, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him.
NIV-Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed-not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence-continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling,for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.
ESV-Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
NASB-So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
These words were written to the Philippians by Paul. Knowing that Paul was writing on behalf of Jesus and therefore God, and that all that comes form the Father and the Son is good for edification of all humans, let's study this as if it was said by Jesus to you or me.
He is saying that we have always obeyed Him, when He was here on Earth with us and even more so after he went back into Heaven.
Now, why is this so important? Well, as the old saying goes, "When the cat's away, the mice will play." When Jesus was here on Earth and visibly walking among people, it was easier for them to obey His teachings.
He was right there and might see them.
When He left, it became easier, as in today, to not obey His teachings fully and completely. It is hard to fathom, with these simple, limited human minds that although Jesus was crucified and arose from the dead, and ascended into Heaven-that He is also Omniscient and sees and hears all-even our thoughts.
Thus it becomes easier to dis-obey Him.
". . .for it is God who is at work in you. . ." Yes, it is God Himself that is in each of us, Working to prepare us for a better, different life on the other side of the grave.
Again, something hard for our minds to understand in its fullness. "He is in us?" you ask. Well, yes.
Just as when you create something-a crocheted blanket, or a birdhouse, or a pair of curtains a part of you is in that object. How much more so when you have created child?
God is in us as He made the first of our race from dirt and his own spit and then breathed life into them from His own Spirit. All that was passed down to each of us--those parts of God, the Creator, the Great Mystery from generation to generation.
". . .both to will and to work for His good pleasure. . ." Does this mean God imposes His Will and His definition of "good pleasure" on us? Yes and no. He will never force us to do or think what He wants or knows is best for us, UNLESS, we have willingly and knowingly submitted to His will for our lives.
" . . .work out your salvation with fear and trembling. . ." This is the tricky part. This is the part that is the hardest to comprehend. Our minds say, "But God tells us what salvation is." "He tells us what we must or must not do."
No, He does not. He gives us warnings. He tells us what He hates and abhors. He tells us the consequences of doing one thing or the other, but He never tells us we must obey.
It is a free will choice to have the fruits of this action or of that action.
So, we must make our salvation with fear and trembling.
KJV-Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of [his] good pleasure.
NKJV-Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
NLT-Dearest friends, you were always so careful to follow my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away you must be even more careful to put into action God's saving work in your lives, obeying God with deep reverence and fear.For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him.
NIV-Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed-not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence-continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling,for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.
ESV-Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
NASB-So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
These words were written to the Philippians by Paul. Knowing that Paul was writing on behalf of Jesus and therefore God, and that all that comes form the Father and the Son is good for edification of all humans, let's study this as if it was said by Jesus to you or me.
He is saying that we have always obeyed Him, when He was here on Earth with us and even more so after he went back into Heaven.
Now, why is this so important? Well, as the old saying goes, "When the cat's away, the mice will play." When Jesus was here on Earth and visibly walking among people, it was easier for them to obey His teachings.
He was right there and might see them.
When He left, it became easier, as in today, to not obey His teachings fully and completely. It is hard to fathom, with these simple, limited human minds that although Jesus was crucified and arose from the dead, and ascended into Heaven-that He is also Omniscient and sees and hears all-even our thoughts.
Thus it becomes easier to dis-obey Him.
". . .for it is God who is at work in you. . ." Yes, it is God Himself that is in each of us, Working to prepare us for a better, different life on the other side of the grave.
Again, something hard for our minds to understand in its fullness. "He is in us?" you ask. Well, yes.
Just as when you create something-a crocheted blanket, or a birdhouse, or a pair of curtains a part of you is in that object. How much more so when you have created child?
God is in us as He made the first of our race from dirt and his own spit and then breathed life into them from His own Spirit. All that was passed down to each of us--those parts of God, the Creator, the Great Mystery from generation to generation.
". . .both to will and to work for His good pleasure. . ." Does this mean God imposes His Will and His definition of "good pleasure" on us? Yes and no. He will never force us to do or think what He wants or knows is best for us, UNLESS, we have willingly and knowingly submitted to His will for our lives.
" . . .work out your salvation with fear and trembling. . ." This is the tricky part. This is the part that is the hardest to comprehend. Our minds say, "But God tells us what salvation is." "He tells us what we must or must not do."
No, He does not. He gives us warnings. He tells us what He hates and abhors. He tells us the consequences of doing one thing or the other, but He never tells us we must obey.
It is a free will choice to have the fruits of this action or of that action.
So, we must make our salvation with fear and trembling.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Friday, December 24, 2010
About Me
I get a lot of questions asking about me, who I am, what I like, my views. So, I decided that I would just write a blog about myself.
I was born in Charlottesville, Virginia at Martha Jefferson Hospital. We only stayed for about two weeks and moved to Jacksonville, Florida. My Daddy fondly referred to Jacksonville as, "The Gateway to Hell."
I really don't remember living there that time, but we went back for a time when I was in the 5th and 6th grades. I loved the Children's Museum and spent hours there.
We moved a lot. Some of the places we lived were (in no particular order):
Raleigh, North Carolina
Dunn, North Carolina
Durham, North Carolina
Washington, North Carolina
Rock Hill, South Carolina
Salter Path, North Carolina
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
My sun sign is Aquarius and my moon sign is Libra. My birth totem is the Otter.
I enjoy auto racing, billiards, bowling, dancing, swimming, horseback riding, hunting, fishing, primitive camping, playing chess, playing cards, gardening, reading, learning, crocheting, making jewelry, going to yard sales and stopping at antique stores.
If I ever have the time and funds to travel I would love to visit:
Russia
India
Germany
South America
That's it for now.
I was born in Charlottesville, Virginia at Martha Jefferson Hospital. We only stayed for about two weeks and moved to Jacksonville, Florida. My Daddy fondly referred to Jacksonville as, "The Gateway to Hell."
I really don't remember living there that time, but we went back for a time when I was in the 5th and 6th grades. I loved the Children's Museum and spent hours there.
We moved a lot. Some of the places we lived were (in no particular order):
Raleigh, North Carolina
Dunn, North Carolina
Durham, North Carolina
Washington, North Carolina
Rock Hill, South Carolina
Salter Path, North Carolina
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
My sun sign is Aquarius and my moon sign is Libra. My birth totem is the Otter.
I enjoy auto racing, billiards, bowling, dancing, swimming, horseback riding, hunting, fishing, primitive camping, playing chess, playing cards, gardening, reading, learning, crocheting, making jewelry, going to yard sales and stopping at antique stores.
If I ever have the time and funds to travel I would love to visit:
Russia
India
Germany
South America
That's it for now.
Friday, November 19, 2010
French Vanilla Ice Cream
This recipe makes 2 quarts.
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 cups milk
2 cups cream (or undiluted evaporated milk)
2 teaspoons vanilla
In a medium saucepan beat eggs and milk. Add sugar mixing well.
Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. It should coat a metal spoon. This will take 10-12 minutes.
Cool. I cool mine by pouring into a mixing bowl and setting in freezer.
Add cream or evaporated milk and vanilla.
Leave in refrigerator overnight.
Freeze in your ice cream machine or you can sit bowl in freezer and stir every 2-3 hours, very well. As it starts to freeze you will to shorten the intervals between stirrings.
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 cups milk
2 cups cream (or undiluted evaporated milk)
2 teaspoons vanilla
In a medium saucepan beat eggs and milk. Add sugar mixing well.
Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. It should coat a metal spoon. This will take 10-12 minutes.
Cool. I cool mine by pouring into a mixing bowl and setting in freezer.
Add cream or evaporated milk and vanilla.
Leave in refrigerator overnight.
Freeze in your ice cream machine or you can sit bowl in freezer and stir every 2-3 hours, very well. As it starts to freeze you will to shorten the intervals between stirrings.
Grannie's Oatmeal Drop Cookies
I love these cookies. Used to make them for my children all the time.
2 cups sugar
6 Tablespoons Cocoa
1½ teaspoons cinnamon powder
½ cup milk
½ cup butter
1 teaspoon Vanilla
3 ¾ - 4 cups Oatmeal
In a medium saucepan mix the dry ingredients well. Stir in the milk very well. Add butter. Heat over medium heat to a boil, stirring constantly. Once it boils, boil for 2 full minutes.
Remove pan from heat and add oatmeal.
Drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper.
Let cool completely, about 4 hours.
2 cups sugar
6 Tablespoons Cocoa
1½ teaspoons cinnamon powder
½ cup milk
½ cup butter
1 teaspoon Vanilla
3 ¾ - 4 cups Oatmeal
In a medium saucepan mix the dry ingredients well. Stir in the milk very well. Add butter. Heat over medium heat to a boil, stirring constantly. Once it boils, boil for 2 full minutes.
Remove pan from heat and add oatmeal.
Drop by spoonfuls onto waxed paper.
Let cool completely, about 4 hours.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Am I Condemned to Hades for being Indian?
I have actually had well meaning people tell I am.
They rarely ask me what my Spiritual or Religious beliefs are or if they do, they ask AFTER having told me Indians/Native Americans are going to hades.
Never can they explain to me why the Indigenous Peoples of America are supposedly condemned by the Creator/God to an eternity of fire and brimstone--just what the collective sin or sin of race or culture is.
Once the statement of so called fact is made, the conversation goes something like this:
Me: Do we agree that there is one supreme being above all else in the universe?
They: Yes.
Me: Do we agree that according to the Bible, that being is a loving God?
They: Yes.
Me: Yet you are telling me that this loving God, created me for no other reason to watch me burn and suffer for an eternity? What kind of love is that?
The conversation generally ends at that point with the other person walking away, head hung down.
They rarely ask me what my Spiritual or Religious beliefs are or if they do, they ask AFTER having told me Indians/Native Americans are going to hades.
Never can they explain to me why the Indigenous Peoples of America are supposedly condemned by the Creator/God to an eternity of fire and brimstone--just what the collective sin or sin of race or culture is.
Once the statement of so called fact is made, the conversation goes something like this:
Me: Do we agree that there is one supreme being above all else in the universe?
They: Yes.
Me: Do we agree that according to the Bible, that being is a loving God?
They: Yes.
Me: Yet you are telling me that this loving God, created me for no other reason to watch me burn and suffer for an eternity? What kind of love is that?
The conversation generally ends at that point with the other person walking away, head hung down.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
So, You Thought You Knew Everything. . .
1. Rubber bands last longer when refrigerated.
2. Peanuts are one of the ingredients of dynamite.
3. There are 293 ways to make change for a dollar.
4. The average person's left hand does 56% of the typing.
5. A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes.
6. There are more chickens than people in the world.
7. Two-thirds of the world's eggplant is grown in New Jersey.
8. The longest one-syllable word in the English language is "screeched."
9. On a Canadian two dollar bill, the flag flying over the Parliament building is an American flag.
10. All of the clocks in the movie "Pulp Fiction" are stuck on 4:20.
11. No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, or purple.
12. "Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt".
13. All 50 states are listed across the top of the Lincoln Memorial on the back of the $5 bill.
14. Almonds are a member of the peach family.
15. Winston Churchill was born in a ladies' room during a dance.
16. Maine is the only state whose name is just one syllable.
17. There are only four words in the English language which end in "dous": tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.
18. Los Angeles' full name is "El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de los Angeles de Porciuncula"
19. A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.
20. An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.
21. Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.
22. In most advertisements, the time displayed on a watch is 10:10.
23. Al Capone's business card said he was a used furniture dealer.
24. The characters Bert and Ernie on Sesame Street were named after Bert the cop and Ernie the taxi driver in Frank Capra's "It's a Wonderful Life".
25. A dragonfly has a life span of 24 hours.
26. A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds.
27. A dime has 118 ridges around the edge.
28. It's impossible to sneeze with your eyes open.
29. The giant squid has the largest eyes in the world.
30. In England, the Speaker of the House is not allowed to speak.
31. The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket.
32. Mr. Rogers is an ordained minister.
33. The average person falls asleep in seven minutes.
34. There are 336 dimples on a regulation golf ball.
35. "Stewardesses" is the longest word that is typed with only the left hand.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Favorite Songs-Well Some of Them
1. Witchy Woman - The Eagles
2. Marie Laveau - Bobby Bare
3. Smooth - Santana
4. Life In The Fast Lane - The Eagles
5. Dirty Laundry - Don Henley
6. I Can't Drive 55 - Sammy Hagar
7. Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves - Cher
8. On The Dark Side - John Cafferty and The Beaver Brown Band
9. Elvira - Oak Ridge Boys
10. Pistol Packin Mama - Hank Thompson
11. Long Cool Woman In a Black Dress - The Hollies
12. Kisses Sweeter Than Wine - Jimmie Rodgers
13. Easy Lovin - Freddie Hart
14. Rock & Roll Lullaby - B. J. Thomas
15. Mambo Italiano - Dean Martin
16. Macarena - Los del Rio
17. How Far is Heaven - Los Lonely Boys
18. Walkin on the Sun - Smash Mouth
19. Heaven's on Fire - KISS
20. Proud Mary - Ike & Tina Turner
2. Marie Laveau - Bobby Bare
3. Smooth - Santana
4. Life In The Fast Lane - The Eagles
5. Dirty Laundry - Don Henley
6. I Can't Drive 55 - Sammy Hagar
7. Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves - Cher
8. On The Dark Side - John Cafferty and The Beaver Brown Band
9. Elvira - Oak Ridge Boys
10. Pistol Packin Mama - Hank Thompson
11. Long Cool Woman In a Black Dress - The Hollies
12. Kisses Sweeter Than Wine - Jimmie Rodgers
13. Easy Lovin - Freddie Hart
14. Rock & Roll Lullaby - B. J. Thomas
15. Mambo Italiano - Dean Martin
16. Macarena - Los del Rio
17. How Far is Heaven - Los Lonely Boys
18. Walkin on the Sun - Smash Mouth
19. Heaven's on Fire - KISS
20. Proud Mary - Ike & Tina Turner
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Some Of My Favorite Movies
These are listed in no particular order:
- Children of a Lesser God
- The Bucket List
- Medicine Man
- Marnie
- Entrapment
- Legends of the Fall
- Scent of a Woman
- The Blind Side
- Gran Torino
- October Sky
- Cinderella Man
- Gangs of New York
- Fried Green Tomatoes
- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- The Notebook
- The Guardian
- Million Dollar Baby
- Fly Away Home
- The Deer Hunter
- The Thorn Birds
- The Cider House Rules
- The Last Samurai
- Save the Last Dance
- Hotel Rwanda
What are your favorite movies?
