Monday 3/17/14 Romans 8/28

Dear Father in Heaven.  Thanks for a great weekend and a wonderful Monday.  Lord, please, please heal my friend Dave.  Please, Lord, he is hurting.  Please be with family and friends, and Lord, please watch over Burt and Patsy.  Lord, Vicki needs Your touch and her plate is filling again.  Lord, please lighten the load of Grant and Wanda, and thanks for taking care of their parents.  Lord, please be with the families of those on that missing airliner, and we pray they are still alive.  Please be with President Obama as he needs Your help.  Lord, please bring peace.  And Lord, please watch over Matthew.  In Jesus' Name, I pray.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, this is like an extra today, but I just want to tell you about this wonderful couple who never stops working for the Lord.  Before I get into that, please pray hard for my dear friend Dave.  He just is not doing well at all.  Also pray for our president and our country and our military.  Also with all your being, you who are saved, it is time to get the word out.  Talk to people about Jesus, be bold land ask them if they are saved, and try your best to lead them to Jesus.  And please keep praying for our Matthew.  Now let me tell you about two wonderful people who you have prayed for a lot.

Romans 8:28 - And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.  (NIV)

Brothers and sisters, a lot of people just say part of this scripture and tell you all things come together for good.  That is not always the case, for we find if we look it tells us that it works for the good of those who love Him and who have been called according to His purpose of what He wants for you.  There are times when we who love the Lord have wondered when are we really going to see the good in this?  To me it was when I was run over on the road on Christmas Eve 1990.  However, this story is not about me.

I want to tell you about two people who came into our lives, maybe five or six years ago.  This couple loves Jesus with all their hearts, minds, bodies, and souls, and they are so much in love with each other.  Years ago we met at Allenberry Playhouse someone when we were doing Santa.  Her name is Barbara Paulus.  You have seen her on the prayer list.  I told her about my daily messages.  Well, Barbara started forwarding them to this couple who followed on the line for a long time like that and then they sent me their email address and would receive the messages directly.  After awhile they started to send cash in nice notes to help pay for food for the food pantry.  Then it was a monthly check, and a couple of years ago the man saved all year to help purchase turkeys.  Now up to this point, I had never met them, not at all, just back and forth emails.

Now I come to find out these folks are not wealthy people, they just love the Lord and invest in Him by helping others and they started helping us.  Along the way we started to talking on the phone and I find that Mrs. is pretty much homebound and her dear sweet husband takes care of her needs.  Again, we had never met this wonderful couple, but now we are praying with them over the phone.  Then Mrs. needed to go to the hospital and was in and out a few times.  Dolores and I talked and we said we must go and meet this couple.  Now they are from York, and the hospital was really big.  We made it, and we got to meet them.  Okay, time to tell you their names.

Allow me to introduce to you Burt and Patsy Emig, two people who love the Lord, love each other, and love us and also love everybody else.  Burt called me and told me that he did not think Patsy would get home anymore and would need to go to a nursing home.  Patsy wanted to go home, and Burt wanted her home, but the Lord is not going to work this one out.  WHY?  Well, God had different plans for them, and often we do not understand just why our prayers are not answered just the way we pray.  Why, because we pray "God's will be done."  God does hear all of our prayers, but it is His will be done.  Patsy was not going to get home to be with her beloved Burt.  So she, after being in rehab, transferred to what I call a retirement home, but let's face it, the term is "nursing home."  This is a place where Patsy will have her room and have help that Burt was no longer able to do.  He wanted to, and he goes to see her most days, riding the city senior bus service.  Oh, did I tell you that Burt and Patsy are not "spring chickens"?  Anyway, now Patsy is in the "home" and Burt is at their home, so how in the world is this playing out in Romans 8:28?

Patsy has become known for praying for people, and as people at the home need prayer, more and more are coming to her for this prayer.  I am talking about staff, other residents, etc., and she is praying for them and telling them about Jesus.  She is planting seeds.  God is using her according to His purpose because she loves Him.  She loves Him even more than her dear Burt, and by the way, Burt loves Jesus more than he loves his beloved Patsy.  "And we know that in all things God works for the good of (Patsy and Burt) who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."

Along the way their computer broke down so each day, after the message is finished, I print a copy and we mail it to them so they can keep up with this line.  They still pray daily for us and for all on our prayer lists.  Dolores and Patsy have become dear friends and exchange letters from time to time.  Burt and I talk on the phone once in awhile for some prayer time.

When you truly love God, step out in faith and know that He will take care of you, in His way.  Just pray and listen and follow Him.

Patsy and Burt, Dolores and I love you very much, and we pray for you daily.  Love ya.  Please pass on the love.

Pastor Dan

Now I know that Patsy and Burt pass on the love.  My question is, do you?  Amen.  (In life, please be a Patsy and Burt.)