August 19, 2012

 This is the second month of our Sabbatical and is designated as a time of rest. It has been restful... as we have been free from ministry responsibilities. It turns out that Susan's need for rest was especially needed at this time as well as mine. We are coming along in this area. We have enjoyed taking an afternoon and evening and visiting places in KC. We went to the "Money Museum" at the Federal Reserve Bank last week and the "Air Museum" at the downtown airport this week. We recommend both. We then have gone out for coffee or a meal afterwards. Another week we enjoyed going to a movie.

My times in the Word have been good this last week. I have been reading about Elijah and Elisha in I Kings and II Kings. In I Kings 4, a widow's creditors were threatening to take her two sons as slaves. All she had was one jar of oil.  She told Elisha and he said, "Go and ask your neighbors for empty jars." So she and her boys collected many empty jars. Elisha then told her to go into her house with her two boys  and to start pouring the oil she had into the empty jars. She did and the oil didn't stop flowing. All the jars were filled. She asked her son, "Are there any more empty jars?" He said, "No."  Then the oil stopped flowing. She was able to pay off her creditors and had plenty left to live on..

As I read this story, my heart was filled with a desire to see people come to Christ and be filled with His Spirit.  I compared people without Christ to the empty jars. My heart is thrilled to think of the Holy Spirit being poured in the empty lives of people to fill them with the Lord and make them useful to God.

This week we will be in St Louis helping our daughter, Mary and her husband Steven. Mary has to go back to work this week but her kids don't start school until next week. It will be an opportunity to be with our 3 granddaughters, 7, 4 1/2, & 1 year.

All for now.

Dave