Category: prayer

Posted in Family, food, forgiveness, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, prayer, priorities, Scripture, Southern born, thankful, Thanksgiving

Bring on the Gravy

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.” Ephesians 1:7-8

It just makes good things better!  Just imagine…Thanksgiving is right around the corner. For most it will be a time together with family and friends— to rejoice and remember.  I know from this side of the fence the Taylor cooks are off the scale good.  Our menu, especially the one that lists the side dishes, is almost set in stone.  Homemade (is there any other) mac and cheese, sweet potato casserole, strawberry pretzel salad and other salads that makes you like salads, Apple pie…well you get the idea.  There is one thing that deserves more recognition at our Thanksgiving table and that is the gravy.

Now I am a Southern boy and gravy has always been a big part of my eating life.  Momma would regularly make both brown and white gravies for our supper and they were incredible.  I remember one time I was reminded that you can have too much of a good thing.  When she cooked a roast I loved to take two slices (one wouldn’t do) of bread and then smother, no drown, the bread in gravy.  Well, one time it got me.  I guess all the goodness in the gravy was too much and I got sick, real sick to my stomach.  It wasn’t pretty.

Momma also made a great giblet gravy at Thanksgiving.  She would take all those things that are tucked inside the turkey when you buy it, cut them up in tiny pieces and put them in her gravy.  Yup…it was incredible.  That’s when I began to learn the value of gravy.  It could take the driest dressing (never my Momma’s mind you) and make it the best dressing in the world.  It worked even better on leftovers.  You go back later that afternoon, fill your plate for round two of the feast, warm up the gravy and let her fly.  The dressing, the potatoes and the turkey all were reborn with a little gravy.

Gravy also can play the role of redeemer with biscuits.  Now even the best biscuits almost always need a little help to become great.  It might be a smothering of butter or butter and syrup and good becomes great.  By far the best soul mate of a biscuit is a flood of good sausage gravy.  On my goodness—that combination is its own food group.  Any good restaurant that serves breakfast is always sure to include that in its offerings. The bottom line is that gravy makes things better.

I know something else that does the same thing—even more so.  That is grace.  Grace is when we choose to extend something good to someone they really don’t deserve.  It might be an act of kindness, a measure of forgiveness or a kind word or two. As a pastor I know people have extended a measure of grace when they commented on some of my sermons.  “Best sermon this year, preacher!”  Well, truth be known it wasn’t that good—they were just being graceful.

Now hear this.  Just like a good gravy can make ordinary or less than extraordinary food taste incredible—grace can do the same thing for life.  Families are stronger, relationships are better, teams at work are more productive when grace is poured all over them.  You probably can remember how political opinions and COVID fractured relationships like crazy.  It divided families, friends and, yes, churches. Looking back, I know we needed to pour some gravy—some grace—all over it.

If you are a Jesus follower then you should be a grace expert.  You know that God extended that grace, His unmerited favor, to you and forgave all your failures, sins, and warts.  If you understand redemption right you know you didn’t deserve it—He just did it because of His love for broken people.  Grace makes the impossible possible.  Grace, like a good gravy, can redeem the worse and restore the driest.  God talks a whole lot about grace in His Book.  I encourage you to Google it and be amazed at grace—God’s grace.  It is so amazing they even wrote a song about.  Perhaps you’ve heard it—Amazing Grace.

Sometimes when I order at a restaurant, I will order my gravy on the side. Let’s be honest—not every place can make good gravy.  But when it comes to God’s grace don’t ever get it on the side.  Just ask God to pour it on heavy—flood the plate of your life. The Book says that through faith in Jesus we have redemption through His death on the cross.  When we believe that God forgives our sins through His grace that He lavishes on us…. wow bring on the gravy…bring on the grace. So, if your life is like a dry biscuit take a break and ask God to pour on the grace.  And if you are overwhelmed by circumstances that have left you like a 3:00 pm pile of dry turkey, ask God to pour on grace and you will soon be revived because…He’s got this.  Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, friends, Grace, life, love, loving others, prayer, Scripture, sovereignty of God, Trials

Approval-itis

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

As the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you. Remain in My love.” John 15:9

If He can’t, why am I surprised that I can’t? Do you know what still amazes me?  Creation…and not just part of it…all of it.  I’m amazed when I stop and look at a spring flower.  I’m amazed that the sun rises and sets day after day.  I’m amazed that my heart beats about 75 times a minute.  That is, wait for it, 108,000 times a day.  In case you are interested that is 39,420,000 times a year.  And, so far, it’s done well for 69 years.  Oh, and I’m amazed that out of all the galaxies, solar systems, and planets—zillions of them—only one can support life as we know it.  Earth.  And it is no accident.  It is an intentional act of creation.

God is really good at creating things.  He made us.  The Bible says that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” Another place in the Bible He says we are His masterpieces.  Now some are Rembrandt’s, and some are Picasso’s, but we are all masterpieces.  Handcrafted by the Creator of the universe—a “one of a kind” miracle. I know He made me with a few quirks and several warts and that is the point of this story…one of my quirky warts.

You see, from the time I was a little kid I have wanted people to like me.  I have craved approval from the time I can remember.  Whether it was from my Momma and Daddy, my brothers or sisters or the guy who picked up our garbage…I wanted approval.  Let me tell you if you are going to have a quirk wart…there are a lot better ones than this one.  The problem with “approval-itis—the need for people’s approval” is that it leads to a far worse disease—the passion, the drive to please people.  Now if I lived out in Montana where my nearest neighbor was 20 miles away, this wouldn’t be such a big problem.  But my life revolves around people—I am a pastor for goodness’ sake.  And to be honest, I want everyone to be happy and I want every one of them to like me. Sigh.

To be clear…the deal isn’t their deal…oh, no it lands right in my lap. The wart with all its bumps is right here.  For years I have been learning, or trying to learn, that I will not ever, never, please everyone.  But like an alcoholic craves the bottle—so we people pleasers crave approval.  And, by the way, I’ve gotten a little better.  Now, if I’m driving down the street and I wave at someone and they don’t wave back, I don’t write down their license plates and put a contract out on them. Smile.

If you can identify in any small way with “approval-itis” I have some good news.  It is sure to help you.  No, it is not seeking counseling and paying someone $125 dollars an hour to tell you that you can’t please everyone.  No, it is not moving to Montana…that wouldn’t work anyway because you would think the horse didn’t like you!  No, it is something that I read in one of my devotions the other morning. It is a simple truth.  Are you ready?  Here it is, “You can’t please everybody.  Even God couldn’t please everybody.”  Now isn’t that just profound…and true.  I mean God is like all powerful, all wise, all knowing and can be everywhere at the same time and a majority of the world is always mad at him.  How about that?

Think about it.  If God couldn’t pull it off, then who am I to think that I can? I guess God could snap His celestial fingers and make everyone like Him, but He has this thing about free will.  He doesn’t want to make people love Him—He wants them to love Him because they want too.  Because.They.Want.To. He loved us so much that He gave His only Son to die on a Roman cross and He did it knowing that many…maybe most…would never even respond.  Amazing.

So, here’s the deal.  I understand that I will never please everyone…probably not even a fraction of the people I bump into.  I can’t do that, but I can do this.  I can love like Jesus loved. He said, “As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love.” He was saying, “Hey, when it comes to loving people…I’m all in. Sit back and enjoy it.”  I can give my best not because a person will respond like I want, but rather because that is what my Dearest Daddy wants me to do.  And guess what?  His approval is the only approval that matters.  We should live, love and long for the audience of One—Jesus.

Well, truth be told, I won’t get this one right in this lifetime because I probably won’t live that long—like a million years.  But with His help I can be more like Him, every day.  Love God, love people.  It’s that simple.  If you are “plum wore out” from “approval-itis,” well, why don’t you just take a rest.  You can, you know—because He’s got this.  Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, fear, Grace, gratitude, life, loving others, missions, prayer, Scripture, sovereignty of God, thankful, travel, Trials

Payback

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

He will not fear bad news; his heart is confident, trusting in the Lord.” Psalm 112:7 (CSB)

Payback isn’t always bad. If you are a Grits reader, you know this is one guy who is pretty proud to be an American.  I love our country but that doesn’t mean we always get it right.  When we were in England, we discovered something that was awesome. Let me explain it to you. We took the train up to Edinburgh, Scotland and back. I had thought about driving but one thing they don’t get right over there is which side of the road to drive on.  They don’t drive on the right side of the road…literally.  So, after a short debate we decided to take the train.

I was impressed that their trains are fast.  The train we caught to Edinburgh was zipping along and I pulled out my trusty iPhone and discovered we were going 125 mph—now that is cool.  But that wasn’t the coolest thing.  Coming back, we were zipping along—until we weren’t.  About two-thirds through the journey, we made an unexpected stop in a small village.  The train driver guy came on the PA and apologized.  There was a problem up ahead with the signaling system so all trains, including ours, were stopped.  Well, after about 15 minutes, he came back on to let us know it was going to be a while, so he invited us to step off the train and stretch our legs if we wanted to.  We did—so we did.

Well, there was a Starbucks inside, so I got a cup of something and then my wife, Judy and I walked up and down the platform for a while. By now we had been stopped for just shy of an hour. No problem…everyone seemed to be handling the delay quite well.  So, we walked some more and finally decided to get back on.  Every few minutes the train driver guy would come back on the PA and apologize and promise to keep us updated. Well, after 118 minutes, I know, not because I was looking at my watch but because he told us, we were “back on the road (or tracks) again.”

As we got underway, he apologized for the twentieth time and then told us to be sure and visit the railroad’s website…wait for it…to get our money back. Yup…you read that right.  Apparently, on public transportation, including railroads, any delay over 30 minutes entitles you to some sort of refund.  In our case, we received a 100% refund of our ticket price…all without even asking.  What! Can you believe that? So, we turned in our information and in a couple of days all if our money was back in our account.  Now that is amazing.

I’m not sure, but that might be one reason why everyone on the train was so low key about the delay. They knew that the train company was going to take care of them. It didn’t change the delay but it sure did make it more tolerable. In a small way, that is kinda, sorta like God. You see in our lives; we have the confident assurance that God is going to take care of us too.  And, if we are wise enough to trust Him, it might just make our life journey less stressful. The journey is better if we know the end…it is true with trains and it is definitely true in life.

So, as you do your life journey, listen for the voice of your Dearest Daddy…He will probably be telling you to trust Him. He won’t apologize for the delay or the circumstances, but He will let you know that…He’s got this. Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, Grace, gratitude, heaven, life, prayer, priorities, Scripture, sovereignty of God, thankful

From Where I Sit

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3:1

It was a moment of perspective. It was Saturday morning…early.  The skies were cloudy, and it was cool…not unpleasantly cool but enough where my shoeless toes were just a bit cold. I had settled on our small front porch and was just looking and pondering.  Our maple tree, Herman, was strutting his stuff, full of mostly red leaves.  My wife Judy and I have had the privilege of living here long enough to see him grow from a twig to a real tree and he is beautiful.

As I looked and as I pondered his fall beauty, it occurred to me that soon, too soon, he would be stripped of his foliage and his truck and limbs would be left bare.  What a stark change…but what a necessary change.  You see, our Creator God, knew not only the value of seasons and cycles for our world and nature, but also for us. It was only a few weeks ago that Herman was fully green—fully full of life.  But as time passed the time came for the beauty of fall followed by the starkness of winter.  But, if all things continue, next spring, life will return.

That, dear friends, is the way it is meant to be—for us.  While nature is on a time schedule, we are not but still the seasons come and go.  With our lives full and our limbs filled with the green of life—we live.  But one day, the leaves will begin to turn, and it won’t necessarily be a time thing—it will be a “His time” thing.  But surely, they will change, and we will face the prospects of winter—when things die back so they can live again in Spring.

If you are like me and constantly amazed how quickly life is sprinting by, understand that while the leaves of our life are slowly changing and one day will be gone—we will not.  We who can call God our Father have the promise of Spring—of new life—not here but there.  But know this—it is as sure as—well anything—and more.  His promise of life after this life is rock solid.  Heaven is real and it is waiting for each person who puts their faith in Jesus—God’s Son.

So, what are we to do? We are to enjoy the seasons…which ever one we find ourselves in. Herman is magnificent now in all his color, but he is also magnificent in summer and spring—and yes—in winter for winter is the promise of a coming spring.  So, enjoy where you are and know that no matter what—no matter if the leaves of our lives are healthy and green or slowly fading and falling—He’s got this.  Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, prayer, priorities, Scripture, thankful, travel, Trials

Seeing Isn’t Always Believing

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

And he looked up and said, “I see men, but they look like trees, walking.” Mark 8:24

He was still there the next morning.  A while back, a couple of really awesome friends allowed us to use their camper for a whole week.  It was a pastor appreciation thing even though I haven’t been their pastor for a long time.  But trust me…we sure appreciated it.  Now I need to tell you this wasn’t one of those camper campers—this was one of those fancy ones—the kind that moves you from camping to glamping.  They set it up for us in a beautiful campground in the Land Between the Lakes.  The leaves were falling, the weather was “fallish”, and we were two happy campers…no pun intended.

One evening I went out to find my car covered with a healthy crop of wet leaves.  With nothing important to do at the time, I begin picking the leaves off my car.  There were lots of different kinds of leaves.  As I worked my way around the car, I found something unusual on the driver’s side rear door.  It was a small stick about three inches long and it was stuck to the side of the door.  I thought that was kind of odd, so I took a closer look.  What I saw was what appeared to be one of those insects that look like a stick.  It had a small head and several joints down its body. It was amazing.  I said, “Hey Judy, come look at this cool insect.  It looks just like a stick.”

Well, she came over and took a look and she said, “Are you sure that is an insect?”  I assured her that it was since I am an amateur entomologist.  Oh, in case you are wondering, that is someone who studies insects.  I know because I looked it up.  So, me, the amateur entomologist, left this fine specimen of the insect world to spend the night on my car.  I really couldn’t believe she had questioned my judgment.  After all, what does she know about entomology anyway?  Well, apparently a lot.

The next morning, we were leaving. As I carried our stuff out to the car, I took the time to pick the remaining leaves off my car and guess what?  My stick friend was still there.  I told Judy, “Hey that stick insect is still on the car.  How cool is that?”  She gave me that “Are you sure it isn’t a stick” look and I gave her the “I know what I am talking about” look.  There was only one way to prove to her that I knew what I was talking about.  It was time for the touch test.  I went over to the car and looked again at my friend.  Head.  Check. Body. Check.  Legs.  Well, real small looking legs, but check.  So, I gave it a poke.  It fell off the car.

Yup.  I hate to admit it, but it was a stick.  I had to do the hard thing but the right thing. I went in and told Judy, “Hey you know that stick insect?  It was a stick.”  How about that?  I tried to lightly brush it off but no, I got a full load of the “I told you so” looks.  The bottom line was, she was right.  She knew her sticks and I obviously didn’t know my insects.  I think it is kinda funny that something I thought that was supposed to look like a stick really was.  No wonder it didn’t move all night.  I guess those weren’t legs after all.

I realized that morning that not everything that looks like a stick insect is in fact, a stick insect—it might just indeed be a stick.  Things are not always as they appear.  Seeing sometimes is not believing.  Our eyes can deceive us.  Our hearts can deceive us. Our minds can deceive us. Things can be deceiving.

There is a cool scripture about Jesus healing a guy who was blind.  Jesus touched his eyes and said, “What do you see?”  The man said, “I see men, but they look like trees walking.”  Well, Jesus touched his eyes again and basically said, “What about now?”  And guess what?  He could see just fine.  Now obviously the man wasn’t seeing trees walking but that is what he thought he could see.  In a world where things are upside-down, we should take the time and carefully examine something before we buy into it.  If I had poked that stick sooner, I would have discovered the truth sooner.  Things are not always as they appear.

However, there is One we can trust who is always spot on and that is God.  He is the real deal and the lens that we view Him is through His Word.  Don’t trust what people say about God—read it for yourself.  God gave us His Word to show Himself to us and then invites every person to read for themselves.  And how often do you get to talk to the Author while you read His book? That’s pretty cool.  And if you choose to read about Him, you will be amazed at what you find.  You won’t find a God that looks like a god.  You will find a God that is God and Who can do what He says.  You will find a God who loves you—a lot.  You will find a God who is not afraid of our investigation of Him because He will stand any test.  So, go ahead.  Read up.  You will find the real deal.  A God that invites you to rest in Him.  A God who’s got this.  Bro. Dewayne

Posted in fear, forgiveness, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, missions, prayer, priorities, Scripture, thankful, Trials, wisdom

Loving a Broken World

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

“If you love Me, obey My commandments.” John 14:15

Did it really happen?  I find myself wondering about that very thing when I remember 2020 and the COVID outbreak.  I am amazed when I think back and realize the worldwide impact of the pandemic.  Economies and societies came to a grinding halt.  When we were recently in England, invariably the topic would come up as people described what they could or could not do. Several members of my family eventually got it and I had it twice and it was a “Debbie-Downer.” For too many it was more than a downer—it was devastating and deadly.

I remember one of our church staff members tested positive for the virus.  When that was reported to the health department it messed with my normal—our normal.  First, because our entire staff had been a room with the positive case, we all were placed on quarantine.  Like it or not, stomp your foot if you want—we were locked up for two weeks.  Fortunately, no one else got it. Yay.  Second, because there were several other cases spread across the church family, most not related in any way, we had to go to remote worship for a couple of weeks. How crazy.

If you didn’t have to experience COVID or the quarantine thing…count your blessings.  You might ask, “Dewayne, what was it like?”  Well, I guess it depends on your perspective.  I know it was personally frustrating.  I found myself telling whoever would listen that I didn’t have time to be quarantined.  Of course, being the creative guy that I am, I found a few ways to work around it while not being around people but that is my secret.  Smile.

I think I came away with a better understanding of the impact this had on the lives of people.  The isolation and the stigma reminded me of what lepers must have gone though in the Bible.  They had to live apart from everyone one else and should they encounter someone they had to holler out, “Unclean, unclean.”  Well, I didn’t encounter anyone, so I didn’t do much hollering, but I did wonder when I saw someone from a distance, “What if they knew I was on lock up?  Would they treat me differently?”  And I decided that they would. I also decided it would hurt my heart.

I wonder how many people we encounter in our walk about world who have been beaten up and scarred by the world who feel the same way?  Do our stares and our intentional avoidance cause them to hurt?  I bet it does.  You know, our eyes and body language sometimes speak louder than our words.  I love the fact that Jesus never avoided the broken ones around Him.  If they had leprosy, He would love them and touch them.  If they were outcast by society because they were prostitutes or tax collectors, He would love them and touch them. If they were Romans soldiers who nailed people to crosses—even Him to His—He would love them and touch them if He could.  I like that…a lot.

COVID is now mostly in the rearview mirror but there are still some positive cases going around. Fortunately, now the symptoms are more of a big inconvenience. But I do think we would be wise to remember and respond to COVID or any other stigma with one question, “What would Jesus do?” When he saw hurting people, He took the time to love them and have compassion for them. And that should be our response too.

Like I said, the COVID thing is largely in the rearview mirror…and I hope that is where it stays. But what is not over is the brokenness in our world—however big or small that world may be.  What is not over is the need for Jesus’ people to be like Jesus. He said that if we really love Him, we should keep His commands.  And there are two that are at the top of His list—love God and love people.  One of the best ways to show our love for God is to show His love for those He created.  All of them.  Social status, skin color, or whatever label we tend to put on them just doesn’t matter.  So, when you bump into someone today, either from a distance or up close, be sure and love them like Jesus and leave the details to God.  You can rest in this one essential, nonnegotiable fact:  He’s got this.  Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, love, loving others, missions, prayer, Scripture, sovereignty of God, thankful, travel, Trials

Early One Morning

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him.” Mark 10:21

The end is a strange place to start.  My wife Judy and I spent a couple of weeks in England and Scotland.  The first part was God stuff, good stuff and the second part was Sabbath stuff, good stuff. But all things come to an end, and it was time for us to head home.  On our last night there we booked a hotel near the airport because we had an early flight.  It was indeed close, but it still required us to take a short ride on the Tube (aka the subway…not the kind that makes sandwiches but the kind you ride on).

So, we walked the short distance to the station and there was the train…we were right on time.  Even though it was 5:30 am, there were still plenty of people on the train, and we all looked strangely alike.  We all were wearing comfortable clothing suitable for traveling and we all had a variety of baggage.  We went to one end of the train car…the only place where there were seats… and grabbed one. It was there that we noticed that not everyone was alike…and not everyone was traveling.

I don’t mean to be harsh but as soon as we sat down, we noticed an unpleasant smell. It was like someone had lost their cookies and it wasn’t cleaned up properly. It was about then that I noticed a man slouched and sound asleep in a seat kinda across from us. At first, I thought he was going to the airport and to work but as I looked closer, it was obvious that he was homeless. His clothing was deeply stained and even his skin was darkened by too many hard days and times.  As I looked…I was grieved.

I can honestly say there was no judgement when my gaze found him.  There was no judgement when I realized he was the source of that unpleasant odor. What there was can best described as sadness, as empathy.  As I studied his weary body and stained backpack, and clothing three things came to mind.  First, this meager life he was living was all that he would have here. He would never have the plushness of my comfortable American life.  Second, I realized that if he slipped into eternity very few would care. There probably would be no family, no funeral, no nothing.

The last thought was this.  That God, the same God that loves me, loved him. The same Jesus that died for me, died for him. He was infinitely valuable to the One who created him.  All of that is true for him and it is true for every person we see…whether wandering aimlessly the streets of Harrisburg or living comfortably in one of our finest neighborhoods.  God loves everyone—the same.

He was still asleep as we departed the train, but I can still see him there.  I truly hope that one day he finds Jesus…the one Person who can change his present and his future.  I hope that for you too.  Everyone needs Jesus.  So, regardless of your station in life know that there is Someone who cares.  Know there is Someone who, no matter what we are facing, is big enough, strong enough and caring enough to declare, “I’ve got this.” Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, food, friends, Grace, gratitude, life, loving others, missions, prayer, priorities, Scripture, sovereignty of God, thankful, travel

Looking for Grits

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

I went and searched, and we were out. You all know that food and I go way back. One of my favorite rooms in my house isn’t the biggest—not by a long shot.  In fact, it is one of the smallest.  It is so small, when they built that part of our house shortly after World War II, they had to custom make a little door for the little room.  I find myself using that door a lot.  And where does that door lead?  It leads into our pantry.

Not every house even has a pantry but ours does.  It is where we keep all our food stuff.  Of course, the cold stuff goes into the refrigerator, the frozen stuff goes in the freezer, and just about everything else goes in the pantry.  So, when you need something that has to do with food…it is the “go to” place.  There are cans and boxes and bags and containers that all share one thing in common—they all contain food.  When Judy is cooking, she will often go there to get what she needs.  Most times she will find it sitting right there on the shelf but sometimes it is empty, sometimes we have used the last of the last and then it is time to go to the store.

Well, I think it is time for my wife (and graphic designer) and me to go the store and get some more Grits.  As you know, our stories are taken from everyday life and after three and a half years, the shelf is getting just a little bare. So, we are going to take a little break and go to the store. For the next couple of weeks, we are going to be “out of pocket” on a mission trip and a week of vacation. We are certain between those two we can surely come back with a fresh supply of adventures and stories.  So, what does that mean?

After today, if you want to find Grits, you will need to visit our Facebook page and scroll back and pick a story to read.  Even better, you can visit our website, http://www.gritswithgrace.com and you can either scroll or search by topic or even scripture. Virtually every story we have written and used or reused over the last three years is there. I hope you will make that your Grits pantry for the next couple of weeks.

If you are into praying, you might ask our Father to help these two weeks to be profitable and peaceful—filled with service and purpose. As you look for Grits each morning, take a moment, and ask God to guide our steps.  We are hoping it will be a time when we can recharge our batteries and come back with a bag full of Grits’ ideas.  Jesus told His disciples that when they grew a little weary, they should come to Him and He would give them rest.  As we go, we are looking forward to spending some time together and with Him.  But don’t forget the big thing we have learned over these months and years that no matter what, we know for certain that, “He’s got this.” Bro. Dewayne

Posted in Family, friends, Grace, gratitude, heaven, life, love, Military memories, prayer, priorities, Scripture, sovereignty of God, thankful, travel

“Firsts”

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

God is not a man, so He does not lie. He is not human, so He does not change His mind. Has He ever spoken and failed to act?  Has He ever promised and not carried it through?”  Numbers 23:19

Saddle up your horses, boys, this is the great adventure.  I was 23 and Judy was 19 when we got on a plane and headed to Germany to live for three years.  Of all our adventures this one was one of the most special because it was the first.  And speaking of firsts, it was a series of many firsts for us.  It was our first trip out of the United States.  As great as our three years in Germany were—it was great to finally come home.  You know they say that there is no place like home—and they are correct.

I am a gadget guy and Germany held a couple of great gadget firsts.  First, if you were in the service (USAF) and went overseas anywhere—you bought a BIG stereo.  I had speakers the size of end tables and a rack of equipment that would make any audiophile jealous.  Receiver, equalizer, cassette recorder/player, reel to reel player/recorder was just the short list of my stereo gadgetry and I was proud of every piece.   I remember coming up with different sale pitches to Judy on why I just had to have whatever was next.  I was pretty good at it too.

It was in Germany that I got my first digital watch.  One of the pilots in my squadron called me over one day and said, “Hey Sergeant Taylor, check this out.”  It was a silver Casio LED digital watch with buttons and a screen.  I was instantly enamored. “Where did you get it, sir?” was the question and the J.C. Penney catalog was the answer.  Three things happened.  First, I checked it out—$69.00 (and trust me that was a chuck of money); two, convince Judy I had to have it.  Last, order it and wait three weeks for the order to be mailed to America (no internet!) and the watch to make the return trip.  Finally, it came. That same watch is $4.99 today.  Imagine that.

It was also in Germany that I learned the wonder of the microwave and got my first one.  There was only one brand in those days—an Amana Radar Range.  This is how it happened.  A senior NCO who attended our church told me one day, “I can boil water in a paper cup.”  I said, “No you can’t” and He said “Yes, I can.”  That resulted in a trip to his house where he promptly put a paper cup in this magic machine and proceeded to boil water in a paper cup.  Done deal.  Had to have one. Amazingly, I was in the Base Exchange (the store on base) and there it was—an Amana Radar Range on clearance no less—for $370.00 dollars. Three things happened.  I convinced Judy we could not live without this modern marvel.  Two, I put it on layaway (remember that?). Lastly, I waited six weeks for three paydays to scrape up enough money to bring it home.  Finally, we did, but you know you can only boil so many cups of water before it loses its pizzazz.

There was one more first thing that we got in Germany, and it had to go into layaway too.  Midway through our last year in Germany, we learned that Judy was expecting our first daughter.  This time for this layaway was nine months.  We left Germany in August of 1980 and Rebecca Dawn was born in Missouri on January 24, 1981.  Unlike the microwave, she kept us pretty amazed day in and day out.  We were so amazed that we decided to get another one and just 19 months after we got Rebecca out of layaway, Jennifer Lynne came along.  I have to say we decided to wait a while to do that again.

The firsts didn’t stop in Germany either.  I can still remember the day we discovered something called Walmart.  We were fresh home from three years in Germany and were setting up our home in Warrensburg, Missouri.  We needed a trash can or something and went with what we were familiar with—TG&Y. It was a five and dime kind of story that we had in South Georgia.  Judy called it “Tator, Gator, and Yator.” Don’t ask me why, but it stuck.  So anyway, TG&Y didn’t have what we were looking for, so I asked a clerk to be sure we weren’t missing it.  She confirmed they didn’t have it and suggested we try the Walmart down the road.  To this day, I remember my reply, “What’s a Walmart?”  Apparently while we were gone to Germany this new store started sweeping the Midwest and then the country. In 1980, Walmart had 296 stores and today there are 11,501.  How amazing is that?

What makes life so interesting is that there is always one more first. Things change—the old moves to the rearview mirror as the next new thing appears in the windshield.  And do you know what?  I’m good with that.  But I am also glad that there are things that remain.  The other day I saw another beautiful sunset personally painted by the God of the galaxies.  It was amazing.

You see, the Bible says “God is not a man, so He does not lie. He is not human, so He does not change His mind. Has He ever spoken and failed to act? Has He ever promised and not carried it through?” The answer is No and No.  He is faithful…He can be trusted. I’m glad we have a God that doesn’t change nor change His mind.  He loves me and you today and He will love us tomorrow.  A zillion, billion years from today—He will still be loving us.  That’s good to know.  It’s good to know that tonight I will lay my head down on my pillow and rest—rest in knowing that I’m in His care.  I am not subject to circumstance, accident, or happenstance.  He holds me, and He holds you—tight.  And tomorrow I’m going to wake up—either here or in an awesome place called heaven—my final first.  Either way, no matter what, He’s got this—and that is enough. Bro. Dewayne.

Posted in Family, food, friends, gratitude, Integrity, life, prayer, Scripture, thankful, Trials

Oh, Sweet Gravy

Posted on by Dewayne Taylor

Taste and see that the Lord is good. How happy is the person who takes refuge in Him!” Psalm 34:8

My eyes said “gravy”, but my mouth said “sweet.” I’m just not much of a cook.  In fact, if cook was a bigger word, I probably wouldn’t even be able to spell it. With that said, every once in a while, I am forced to venture into the kitchen. I do manage to cook my own breakfast but occasionally I even manage to mess that up. Such was the case a couple of weeks ago.

It was Saturday and My wife Judy had a teaching thing in a town about an hour away, so I was on my own. She had cooked some sausage gravy the day before, so I looked in the refrigerator to see if there was any left.  There was some sausage but no gravy.  I did find a small container that looked like the milk and flour beginnings of gravy, so I grabbed that and poured it into the frying pan.

After a few moments, I realized whatever this was needed some help. Despite my best efforts, it simply wasn’t becoming gravy. I went to the pantry and found seasoned flour and shoveled in several tablespoons.  Well, that did the trick, in fact so much, that I had to add some milk to loosen it up some. Before long it at least looked like gravy.  Well, about that time a piece of sausage went over the side of pan and onto the stove. I picked it up and, being the frugal guy that I am, popped it in my mouth.  “Hmmm, not bad, but sweet.  How strange” I said out loud to myself.

Well, I put the gravy in a bowl and, since we were out of bread, got a spoon and proceeded to dig in.  To my surprise, the “gravy” was indeed sweet and yes, I did go ahead and eat it.  How strange indeed. Well, I pondered and pondered how I ended up with sweet gravy and I finally figured it out.  You see, Judy had put some of her Italian sweet cream creamer into a container to take on our trip to Georgia.  She had forgotten to take it and the container was still in the refrigerator. It turns out that what I thought was the makings of gravy was in fact coffee creamer.

You know, it sure looked right and it even kind of cooked right, but the bottom line was regardless of how it looked or cooked—it was not what I thought it was. And I learned that coffee creamer just doesn’t make gravy.  I’m not sure what it makes—but it doesn’t make gravy. I learned there and then to make sure I knew what was going in the pan before I started cooking.

That is a great lesson for making gravy and it is a great lesson for doing life with God. There are some things in this world that can look like God.  Religion is one of them. And there are plenty of things that can take the place of God and in the process become a god. So, it is important we make sure we are loving and serving Creator God and not some sort of substitute.  And remember, nothing, and I mean nothing, can take the place of the real deal. Whether it is in the kitchen or on the streets—make sure you have what is real. If you find yourself a little confused, don’t worry, just ask Him and He will let you know what’s real and what’s not.  He’s got this.  Bro. Dewayne