The Sermon from our Chaplain Minister

Where's the yeast? Good question!

What to do when your dear friend or family seems to be demeaning your heritage or family?

ie.Bodden Chicken, "you are acting like a Bodden!", That's just like the Boddens do things!, etc.

I don't like it, but I laugh along. I know that we are like the "Unimind!" LGM's, etc. Those are my characterizations and I can laugh at it. But sometimes the characterizations hurt! :( Waaaaaaa! Mommy, they are making fun of us, is what you want to say. It starts with the SAT's and tests like that where they find a question that makes everything in your soul crawl and seethe with anger. They talk about fat people and Christians and Black people and Southerners and Northerners and New Yorkers and I feel like getting them back. Could they possibly have a good motive and a friendly reason for hurting my feelings like that?

It is hard being sensitive. Education does some to help you to put on a stoic expression, when you are hurt or seething. It is kind of like childbirth classes. You know it is going to happen, but when it does all the classes go out of the window and it is every expression for itself!

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good!

Even after much prayer and crying, you have questions about what you did to cause this and what could you have done to have prevented it. God is growing you and strengthening you for this time, so that you can be more sensitive to others' pain, when they go through it. How could I be going through puberty again? Come and lift up your sorrows and learn to laugh with and at yourself and how people may or might characature you in life and practice. Your tears mean that you are not an idol. You are human! Keep getting up from those skinned knees and you will become a great and mightily used woman of God!

You are not here to experience the trepidation and fear and growth as a family

that we face as we stand outside of the door of saying goodbye to our dear dog Emma!

We are all stumbling over ourselves. I hope that your message to God's people on Sunday will reflect the hope that we all feel that one day, no person or dog will ever go through these horrors and sad occurrences again.Your father and Enoch are growing in their leadership and teamwork with eachother. They are seeing that masculinity lends, with its receipt, a responsibility to protect and do things that are very difficult.

I do wish that you would have seen them in the teamwork of cleaning her, in her most scrungiest moments of suffering. Enoch had to direct much of the operation, because your father was beside himself that it had come to this.

NObody looks at their puppy and imagines that she will one day become completely incapacitated. Those same legs that woke each day and ran and jumped and helped us in so many ways throughout her, seemingly short life, would crumble under her so that she can't even stand or move herself. Jesus is with us, even now.

It is hard because Emma represents our childhood in NC. She stood with us through the pains of adjustment from the big city to the "boonies", so to speak. We stand at the door of her departure and attempt to hold onto the childhood that her life touched for each of us. She was there for the changes from elementary to middle school and rejoiced each day, when the little feet came home from school! I am so sorry when I see Ezzy with no happy greeting or happy goodbye from this canine friend that came to live with us. She was there from "counting the quarintas" to the "evacuation drill". It was as if God knew that her heart couldn't rest, if she really thought that she had let one of the sheep escape and she had to know where you had gone to, each time you left. She got to sleep in your room and say goodbye to that part of her care of you.

We are learning, in this epoch of our family dynamic, to respect each other's gifts and contributions to the family. Enoch has been directing and taking the authority of caring for Emma. He is very tired of that responsibility and it is coming to a very real end soon. At this point, I would get another Border-Collie, but we are swiftly becoming individuals and I don't think there will be a group for her to herd.

We wish you all the best in your message, this Sunday and we would be there to support, if we could. Do well!

Were you here with us on Sunday? I miss you

It was wonderful having you home, deary! I know that you are now not used to helping at home as much. But your cooking has truly developed and I was grateful for the wonderful peacemaking and peacekeeping skills that is clearly your forte.

As soon as you leave there is an argument and we all say. Evvie is the one who would have made a joke about that which would unraveled the conflict. Thanks for all you do and keep up the good work! Love MOM.