Teresa's Treasures

Right now you’re either going through a major trial in your life or you’ve just gone through one or one is lurking on the horizon. Whoever/wherever you are, you’re not exempt – no one is. James says, “Consider it pure joy, whenever you face trials of many kinds,” which is what I’ve come to do. This is how trials have blessed my life. They’ve made me realize -- 1) That in this world you will have trouble. It’s a promise. 2) That death, mourning, crying and pain are “the old order of things.” (Rev. 21:4) They’re expected – the norm. They’re an indication I’m still alive and living in THIS world. 3) That death is inevitable; it was God’s first promise. 4) That there are worse things than death. To live here forever would be a punishment. 5) That my citizenship really is in Heaven! 6) That faith is the key – the victory that overcomes the world. 7) That it’s ALL about God; it’s not about me. 8) That my faith is IN God, not THAT God will … 9) That to believe that God EX...

Yesterday Laura and I sang hymns at Magnolia Village for Alton’s 90th birthday party—“The Old Rugged Cross,” “Amazing Grace,” “No Tears in Heaven” to name a few. Mr. Herald, I was told, loved “I’ll Fly Away” so it was he I watched as we started to sing his favorite. Mimicking a bird he whipped the air back and forth, back and forth with his hand, flying it gracefully up toward Heaven. Last night after returning home from Gatlinburg, dropping by to see “Mammie” (Brody would have dropped by to see Phil had “Pappaw” been home) David plopped Brody in my arms at the front door. As I carried him into the kitchen he saw the fan, two to be exact, mimicking them with his hand, just like Mr. Herald had mimicked the bird with his. Hands—they’re significant. My hand lines, my fingertips tell my story; yours tell yours. Whether you’re old like Mr. Herald and about to die or young like Brody and about to live, God gave you your own DNA. He made us all unique yet in some ways the same. We ALL ne...

And God said “Let there be light,” and there was light. God spoke from silence. JESUS became THE WORD that is accepted by faith. Faith dwells in silence. THE WORD was revealed and is interpreted by the HOLY SPIRIT. The language of the Spirit is silence. The home of the word is silence—any word. It doesn’t matter whether it’s God’s or man’s. I meditated on this for weeks while I was sick. I usually experience the lesson I am learning at the same time I’m learning it (meditating on silence, in silence). AFTER sharing what I had meditated on with Phil, I found these words written by Henri Nouwen, one of my favorite authors, in his book “The Way of the Heart.” (When the student is ready the teacher comes. And God confirms what He’s teaching repeatedly to me.) “Out of his eternal silence God spoke the Word, and through this Word created and recreated the world. In the beginning God spoke the land, the sea, and the sky. He spoke the sun, the moon, and the stars. He spoke plan...

Twelve hours of every day for the last month I’ve spent in bed. And every minute of those twelve hours I’ve shared with a bird outside my bedroom window. Unlike the bird I wrote about in April of 2009, this bird’s song is a cacophony, not a symphony – a constant, squawking, repetitive, distracting noise – reminding me of the world. And much like having to choose how I respond to the constant, squawking, repetitive, distracting sound of the world, I’ve had to choose how I've responded to the noise of the bird outside my bedroom window. In this world… The happy hear voices and laugh. The sad hear voices and cry. The friendly hear voices and talk. The lonely hear voices and remain silent. The optimists hear voices and trust. The pessimists hear voices and doubt. The worried hear voices and fear. The content hear voices and remain calm. How you feel at any given moment is a result of how YOU feel – what’s going on INSIDE of YOU – not because of what’s going on on th...

My husband and I have been leaders in the church for over thirty years. We’ve seen the good, the bad and the ugly. The good has been good. The bad has been bad. And the ugly has always been difficult – difficult for leaders who have to deal with it, difficult for the congregation who is sometime left in the dark and difficult for the community who sees the incongruence between the church’s walk and the church’s talk – the very people we try to influence for good. The world is an ugly place – where ugly belongs; but when it spills over into the church it becomes a different type of ugly. One night when I was sick and unable to “go to church” I was watching a 60 MINUTES episode with Katy Couric where she was interviewing Defense Secretary Robert Gates who served for 26 years in the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Council, and under President George H. W. Bush as Director of Central Intelligence. He has continued serving as Secretary of Defense in the Obama admini...

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR OVERCOMING WORRY AND ANXIETY Ask yourself “What am I thinking?” Bring your mind back to the present moment. “Right now is where life is truly lived. Life is a series of present moments to experience.” * “A mind that is out of the moment is fertile ground for worry, anxiety, regret and guilt.” * Looking back brings regret and guilt. Looking forward brings worry and anxiety. 100% of life is lived in the present moment. Realize you are God's child and your Father knows best. 1) God is in control 2) His timing is perfect and 3) He’s never made a mistake These three facts are true but hard to grasp. Once understood, and applied, they can help you cope with any and everything. Ask yourself “Is this worry real?” If it’s from the past, it’s only a memory. “Memories are simple, harmless thoughts passing through my mind.” * “The only way a thought or series of thoughts can harm me is if I give them significance.” * “If I don’t, they have no power to hurt...