Thursday 5/16/1941/2013 Christians' Reponsibilities

Dear Father in Heaven, thank You for  really great and blessed day.  Father, I just had the best birthday that I can remember, and all glory and honor is Yours, dear Lord.  Thanks for the great news on Dolores' first eye check-up.  Thanks for all the blessings today, and Lord, I am so excited to tell people about them.  Please be with those on our prayer list and please be with our neighbor Crissy Laudig and help her with her back.  Lord, she has so much pain.  Now, Lord, please keep this line open for our message and help me with it.  In Jesus' name, I pray.  Amen.

Good Evening, my dear brothers and sisters, what a beautiful day here at the Southern Location of the North Pole, and I am so excited to tell you about it.  Today, May 16th, is my 72nd birthday, and I think it is the best, the very bet birthday that I had, with maybe the exception of when I turned 16 and got my learner's permit and my driver's license the very next day.  I just need to share the events of today with you, and they really do blend into the message on Christians' Responsibilities.  As you are aware, yesterday, May 15, Dolores had surgery to remove a cataract, and the surgery went great, all honor and glory to God.  On Monday, May 13th, Ruth Kessler, who lived at The Bridges, went home to be with the Lord.  I received a call that day to do her memorial service which was scheduled for today.  To do this we had to have Dolores' follow-up appointment moved from the time it was scheduled.  God worked that out right away and her appointment was changed to be the first one today.  So we got up really early so that we could get ready to get out of the house.  This was a 4:00 AM get up, as we do have a lot to do to take care of our animals.  Most of you know we adopt senior dogs that are in the most part house bound.  So each morning I mop the house from one end to the other.

Chores done and off to the eye surgeon and PRAISE GOD, she could read almost the entire chart, better than 20/20 so the lens in her glasses was removed.  Okay, off from there, we came home and I headed right back out for our local Giant store where it was our Ministry's turn to pick up the pulled bread, and we were so blessed.  Two shopping carts of baked goods, so many that our freezers that hold the bread are packed full.  THANK YOU, JESUS!!!  While at the store I did some shopping and when I arrived back home it was all I could do to walk, each step hurt so bad I did not know if I could keep moving.  About that time our neighbor Art from across the street came over.  He had heard a noise he did not like and thought I was hurt. While he was here he unloaded all the baked goods I had loaded in the trailer.  PRAISE GOD FOR HE SENT ME HELP!!!  By now I was getting hot and stinky (facts are facts, folks.)  So I needed to take another shower ... PRAISE GOD FOR THE WATER.

Then Dolores and I secured the animals and off to Ruth's Memorial Service.  I was to be in charge of this service so I turned the leadership over go GOD.  The family requested that I work with Pastor Keith who is with Hospice into the program.  I have worked with this pastor before and I just asked him to open with scripture and prayer after I opened with some music.  So open we did with "This is The Day."  Then Pastor Keith was next and he did a wonderful job.  Then more singing after which I needed to work into the program Ruth's son-in-law who is a Greek Orthodox Priest whose name is Paul, so I referred to him as Pastor Paul.  This pastor did a family history and also scriptures from memory, he was so good to listen to, but wait a minute, I had to follow Pastor Paul, so praying again, I went up after Pastor Paul and two other family members spoke and one played a music number.

Now it was my turn.  Now more singing, and we were singing some good old hymns.  Justin from The Bridges was there to play guitar, but no piano to sing with, but it went well.  I started my message very differently as I went to Matthew 22:23/33.  Now I am not typing this out, but it is about "marriage at the resurrection."  I picked this scripture as both Ruth and her husband Ed had been married before, so I went over this scripture so that all would understand that when we get to heaven we will be married to Jesus.   Dear friend Neil Enloe wrote a song about this.  "Next time I get married I'm going to marry a man."  The song is great, and without fail, God gave me the message to go with the scripture.  This was a last-minute change.  Then I, as I always do, talked about Salvation.

Folks, as you know, the person who has passed away has in this case gone to heaven.  She confessed herself over to God a long time ago.  So now I talked to everyone else to pray along with me as I did a sinner's prayer.  I talked about salvation through Jesus Christ and the steps to Jesus.  Then it was more singing and more singing.  Then as always after a memorial there was food.

All in all, brothers and sisters, it was such a great day, and I want to give all honor and glory to God for the day.  Now, brothers and sisters, this birthday was different for me, but being called by God I had Christian Responsibilities, and I have been writing about them this week.  Now I am not going to write a message on top of this.  For one reason, I am falling asleep, and for the second, I think you get the point about your responsibilities to God.  When God calls, you do all you can to work for Him.  THANK YOU, JESUS, FOR TRUSTING ME TO WORK FOR YOU.

Now, brothers and sisters, share your blessings and go working for God, it is your Christian Responsibility.  WHAT A GREAT DAY.  I hope yours was good also.  See you tomorrow.  God bless you, I love ya.  (Pass it on.)

Pastor Dan