Friday, May 06, 2011 1:47 AM

God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." ---- "Mary, you have found favor with God! You will be with child and give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus."

Good Early Friday Morning, my dear brothers and sisters, and it is beautiful. Friday and the day we pray for all who work in the fields of harvest for our Lord Jesus. You are on that list, right? All of us should be on this prayer list, for we should all be working for Jesus. Two announcements this day... Tomorrow, Saturday May 7th at noon on the Capitol steps in Harrisburg, Pa., (State Street Side) a rally to support our troops... Look me up if you come, I will be up on the top level as I am doing the prayers. Also pray for me that I do it right for God. Saturday July 2nd, Dolores and I have again this year rented the large pavilion at Willow Mill Park in Silver Spring Township. Once again the food will be furnished by us and cooked up by Chef Santa. We will eat at noon, come early, stay late, and if you really want to bring something, bring a canned good for the food pantry, but that is not needed as this is a thank you for your love and support picnic. Our children will be there, our flock from the Bridges should be coming, and I hope a lot of neighbors. Anyway, more later, and I will just need a number of how many. Ok, time to get to the message...

Mothers, God's Second Greatest Gift 5: Luke 1:26 - In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God! 31 You will be with child and give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus." (NIV)

First, let me back up a few days and update you on the term "Mother" used by the Catholic Church. Sharon Ogden contacted me and left me with this statement. "The term 'Mother' is normally used as the head nun of a convent or order as in 'Mother Teresa'". (Thanks, Sharon.) Not being Catholic I wanted to get it right for our many Catholic readers on this line.

Ok, for my final choice, and all of you knew who it really would be, right? Yes, the Virgin Mary and the Mother of our Lord Jesus, our Lord and Savior and might I say it was and is to this day, the only virgin birth. Think what it must be like as a young girl, a teenager who is going to carry in her womb the one who will be born in a barn, and grow up to save all of us, including His very own mother.

Why not take time today to curl up with a good book, your Bible, and read the Christmas story again, read up on Mary... Now as promised early this week, a bit about this Mother I called Mamma.

I just need to talk to you about a lady who just loved me with all her heart. She was Sara Margaret Kimmel Lehman, and she was my mamma. I guess my memory of her goes back to when I was in elementary school. I remember how hard my mamma worked. You see pop and mom were both school teachers and pop taught out of town, so mom sort of raised my brother and I by herself all week as dad stayed out of town coming home only on weekends. At the time mom taught at a daycare and would leave for work as I would leave for school. I had about a mile to walk one way and we did that four times a day for we came home for lunch. However, my mamma worked, so each week she would stop at a small store near the school and ask the owner to look out for me. She would pay in advance for a cup of soup and a hotdog and leave five cents extra for me to get candy. You might think back then that she would stay home so I could go home for lunch, but pop being a teacher then made very little. After school in the evening I would get home ahead of mom and find the key to the house in the milk box and it would be shortly after that mom would get home. Then she would start dinner, do the washing (it was not automatic back then) She would wash one evening, hang the clothes to dry in the basement, and the next night take them down and sprinkle them and roll them and iron them the next day. Yes about three evenings doing the wash. She also took in washing and ironing to help pay the bills. Mom also always had a snack ready for me to eat when I got home from school. One afternoon I got home and made myself a sandwich of homemade ham spread. I toasted the bread on that old toaster, one side at a time, put some mustard on the toast and piled it high with that ham spread.

When mom got home she went to feed the dog and asked, Danny did you feed Mickey? No, mom I did not, I answered. Then I wonder what happened to the dog food I opened yesterday and had in a dish in the fridge, she asked... Gosh, I just had a dog food sandwich (been barking ever since.) It was good for a laugh, or it was for her. Yes, I had a good mother, she worked hard, real hard and she loved my brother and I. There was nothing she would not do for us. She made most of our clothes, she made our coats and pants we wore to church and Sunday school, and she made sure we went. She was great. One January day and I will never forget it, I came home after school driving my old hot rod Ford and she said no work today? I said no, the boss gave me the evening off. (I worked at a service station.) She said good, how would you like to drive my car and take me downtown (Harrisburg, Pa.) to the Green Stamp store? (You remember collecting those stamps, right?) Anyway, I jumped at the chance for I just love to drive.. So I got behind the wheel of her old Buick and off we went. As we neared downtown a real big old Buick, yes, another Buick was coming at me on the wrong side of the road. Crash, we were hit head on, and Mom went head first into the windshield smashing it into what seemed like a lot of pieces even thought they did not come apart. I was getting out of the car and could see she was hurt real bad. I went to the other side to help her and the man that hit us was laughing at her, as he was as drunk as drunk could be. He laughed at my beloved Mamma who was sitting in her seat with blood running down her face. Well, I drew back to hit him when a policemen walked up behind me and caught my arm. Son, I will take care of him, I saw the accident,. The man was arrested for disorderly conduct, not drunk driving. He had no insurance so pop had to pay all the bills, Mom passed away that December, a brain tumor, they said. Most of the time between those dates she was just laying in a coma in the hospital, till one night I went in and she was awake sitting in a chair. She said I love you, son, I called my brother at his work and he went to see her, and she told him the same. I love you son. She died that night. As I relate this story right now tears are rolling down my face, for the I know my mother is with Jesus, she loved my brother and me, but she loved Jesus even more. The older I get the nearer I get to seeing her again. Now I don't want to go yet, but I sure am starting to get excited about seeing my mamma, and seeing my Jesus.

Dear Father in Heaven, Thank You for mothers, all mothers and thanks for mine. I was so blessed. Lord, help us all to honor our mothers and not just one day a year but all 365 with an extra each fourth year. Thanks Jesus, for Your Mother, the wonderful Blessed Virgin Mary. I give thanks this day in the name of Jesus. Amen...

And now go forth and share your blessings and please take time to read on, for a writing from my Brother in Christ, Douglas Boyer... Love ya, Pastor Dan.



A MOTHER’S LOVE

By Douglas Boyer

A Mother’s love is something that no one can explain, it is made of deep devotion and of sacrifice and pain, it is endless and unselfish and enduring come what may.

Nothing can destroy it or take that love away, it is patient and forgiving when all others are forsaking, it never fails or falters even though the heart is breaking.

It believes beyond believing when the world around condemns, and it glows with all the beauty of the rarest, brightest gems. It is far beyond defining, it defies all explanation, and it still remains a secret like the mysteries of creation.

A many splendor miracle man cannot understand and another wondrous evidence of God’s tender guiding hand.