A MUST Read On How the Game of Basketball Began

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CHILD LOANED by Edgar Guest - one of my favorite poets

"I'll lend you for a little time
A child of Mine," He said.
"For you to love the while she lives,
And mourn for when she's dead.
It may be six or seven years
Or twenty-two or three,
But will you, till I call her back
Take care of her for Me?
She'll bring her charms to gladden you,
And should her stay be brief,
You'll have her lovely memories
As solace for your grief.
I cannot promise she will stay,
since all from Earth return,
But there are lessons taught down there
I want this child to learn.
I've looked this wide world over
In My search for teachers true,
And from the throngs that crowd life's lanes,
I have selected you;
Now will you give her all your love,
Nor think the labour vain,
Nor hate Me when I come to call
and take her back again?
I fancied that I heard them say,
"Dear Lord, Thy will be done,
For all the joy Thy child shall bring,
For the risk of grief we'll run.
We'll shelter her with tenderness,
We'll love her while we may,
And for the happiness we've known,
Forever grateful stay.
But should the angels call for her
Much sooner then we planned,
We'll brave the bitter grief that comes
And try to understand.

God Is In Control

God could have shown us how great He is. He could have displayed how powerful and above us He is. Instead, He became as small as we are. What did Jesus know that enabled Him to do what He did? Here's part of the answer. He knew the value of people (His sheeple). He knew that each human being is a treasure. And because He did, people were not a source of stress, but a source of joy. Jesus knows how you feel. You are precious to Him. So precious that He became like you, so that you would come to Him. It is outrageous for the Christ whose rightful place is at the right hand of His Father to step out of timelessness into our world to live as one of us. For people with bodies, important things like love have to be embodied, or else people with bodies would never in a trillion years understand about love. It was not necessary to nail Him to His cross. His unfailing love, arms opened wide for us, would have held Him there. That I should such a life destroy yet live by Him I killed! He lived for us, then He died for us, and then He rose for us. His death atoned for our sins, and His resurrection opens the door to everlasting life. How much easier it would have been for Him to not give us a choice. But to remove the choice would be to remove the love. The one who chose to love created one who could love in return… Now …. it's our choice. Jesus is fishing for us, not to kill us but to give us life. God woos us with kindness. He changes our character with the passion of His love.

God is looking down on this earth, half angry because His beloved mankind has cheated on Him, has committed adultery, and yet He is hopelessly in love with her. God's goodness is spurred by His nature, not by our worthiness. We are wanted by God, pursued by God. He is wanting to preserve us, to guide us through the darkness of the shadow of death up into eternal life in His presence. We are temporarily in these shells on this earth. Paul had no questions. That is how he could be beaten one day, imprisoned the next, and released only to be beaten again and never ask God why. He understood the earth is fallen. He understood the rules of Rome could not save mankind, that mankind could not save itself; rather it must be rescued. He knew he was not in the promised land, but still in the desert. We seem to forget - perhaps more truthfully, we refuse to remember - that we are the ones who betrayed Him, not vice versa. We are the ones who listened to the lies of the evil one in the Garden; we chose to mistrust the heart of God. Why, oh why do we have difficulty believing in the God who created the entire universe? Why do we have trouble believing in the One who sent His only Son to save us from ourselves? In the same way God delivered the Israelites from Egypt, so he has delivered us from eternal death to eternal life through His beloved son. He's delivered us from bondage to sin, bondage to narcissism, into fullness of life lived with and for Him.

True, God is in control of the universe. True, He can prevent suffering whenever He sees fit. However, that doesn't mean that everything that happens is His doing. Wherever free will exists, by the very nature of things, consequences of choice must exist. These consequences will be either good or bad, depending on the decisions that are made. We are all being tempted by satan. Pain, suffering and death are the result of man's abuse of free will. God does not prevent man's disobedience, even though He knows the consequences will be devastating. He allows a man to reap what he sows. Selfishness grows from the anarchy seed, the seed of the evil one. satan lashes out on the earth like a madman, setting tribes against each other in Rwanda. satan devastates many lives through starvation, alcoholism, substance abuse and pornography. satan is at work in economic chaos around the world, and the corporate-driven greed of American executives. satan is at work in the holocaust of violent, non-loving, disrespecting aborting of babies in the U.S. of A., the narcissism, materialism and intellectualism in America, social class snobbery, and the self-absorption we wallow in when we do not ensure our next generation is brought up in a culture with enriching, wholesome values. What a great responsibility it is to be human. We are human because God made us. If you are not living in touch with God, it is easy to blame Him or pass judgment on Him. We experience suffering and temptation because mankind chose to follow satan. God is reaching out to rescue us … God made nature to sing His praises, to declare His glory and to love Him. He made humans with the ability to choose. He could have ordered our obedience; instead He calls for our heart.

HANDS

His hands, my hands, our hands reaching out in love,

Obeying all instruction from our Father God above.

From Jesus’ holy hands pierced to set us free,

Not needing nails to hold him there, just His love for me.

To the hands of flesh I offer Him out of humility.

His hands, my hands, our hands displaying servanthood,

Not choosing evil with our will, but only used for good.

With pure hearts and clean hands we serve our Lord and brothers,

Giving allegiance to our Lord, after Him all others.

His hands, my hands, our hands healing hearts and lives,

Not insisting on my way but allowing His will to rule our lives.

Teaching us in His Word if we seek holiness as He is holy,

Not one can snatch us from His hand, if we, for Him, live solely.

His hands, my hands, our hands cherishing the poor,

Pure religion is to devote ourselves to them forevermore.

Made by God to carry one another’s burdens, we are,

Nurturing and affirming hands help carry one another far.

His hands, my hands, our hands accepting all the same,

Not respecting any above the rest, in precious Jesus’ name.

Living sacrificially, impressing on our children His commands,

Daily living by them, tying them as symbols on our hands.

His hands, my hands, our hands reaching out in love,

Fitting well together just like a hand in glove.

Ginny Bain Allen

CHILD OF MINE

God’s thoughts are so far above our own.

His ways much higher and are not known.

Uniquely her own are my child’s thoughts, ideas, plans and dreams.

Rejoice do I, as she is fearfully made in God’s grand scheme.

This treasure sent to me from heaven up above.

Entrusted with her care - for a while mine to love.

The decisions she makes for herself are not up to me.

Called to train and instruct her am I, but then to set free.

Growing together as we will to travel His narrow way.

Because of her, more like Jesus I’ll be with each passing day.

Ginny Bain Allen

My Gardening Bug

Enthusiastically catching the enchanting gardening bug as a girl, laboring alongside Dad, my ardor blossomed through the decades. Devouring myriad reading materials regarding my passion, indulging in classes, acquiring usage of efficient tools, perusing public and private gardens alike, coupled with dreaming, designing, digging, amending, planting, mulching, watering, weeding, pruning, and manicuring my own "yardens" have fueled my immense love, while expanding my knowledge. Pure ecstasy is plunging my fervent hands into the warming earth each spring as the fresh green emergence of sleeping plants resurrect. Healing for me, gardening allows all woes - Adam and Joseph who? (my twin teenage sons) - to slip away as I toil peacefully, in my secure refuge, with my omnipotent Creator. Differentiating garden rooms, placing comfy perches for viewing the beguiling results of my efforts, portraying intrigue as vanishing paths meander to hidden destinations, layering plants with varying aromatic scents, textures, colors, and heights in my curvaceous beds, affording a sense of wonder for my children, arranging rocks I glean from friends and family, adding objets d'art and hardscapes as focal points of attention, while providing nutrition, water, and safe havens for God's creatures are essential ingredients in my romantically distinctive, rejuvenating gardens.

Hannah Rose, My Lovely One

Grace and mercy is what thy lovely name means,

Before you were born, you were much in my dreams.

To me, in His plan, thy life God foretold,

He created your form in thy unique mold.

Expectantly awaiting your birth that year,

How we rejoiced when you were finally here.

Our miraculous gift from heaven above,

Placed in our family to treasure and love.

Entrusting you, darling, in my arms to hold,

An example thou art to both young and old.

In living for God, you have nothing to fear,

Thy faith in Him makes you believe He is near.

Your loving spirit is a beacon for Him

Keep nurturing so it will never grow dim.

God wills you to work beside Him and be bold,

You run for the prize that is made of pure gold.

Thou art such a joy to spend time with and rear,

My Hannah Rose I will forever hold dear.

by Your Mother Dear

(Ginny Bain Allen)