thankful – Page 107 – Grits with Grace

fear, gratitude, life, prayer, Scripture, thankful, wisdom

The Thief

Posted on August 11, 2020August 10, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts.” Psalm 90:12

The thief has struck again. Without anyone noticing a thief has been stealing from us all. It happens visually everyday and no one does anything to stop it because they can’t. Slowly and almost without notice the thief takes from us and we usually don’t notice until it is too late. Who is this thief? It is time itself…the calendar.

The day of the year with the most daylight hours is usually around June 21st. It is known as the summer equinox. On that day, the tilt of the earth allows the northern hemisphere to be closest to the sun allowing the maximum amount of daylight hours. On June 21st sunrise occurred at 5:32 am in our town. Fourteen hours and forty-six minutes later it sets at 8:19 pm. From that time forward, slowly and surely the amount of daylight hours slowly begins to recede.

You ask, “How much?” Well, today the sun will rise at 6:07 am and will set at 7:50 pm. If you do the math you will discover that will give us 13 hours and 43 minutes of daylight. Amazingly you will find that the thief has taken an hour and 3 minutes from us. And each passing day he will take another few minutes. Finally, someday in the near future you will get up and wonder why it is still dark or why the sun is setting so early. The answer is the daylight thief.

I find all this pretty fascinating. As the days and weeks march by it reminds us that fall is coming. Before long, the leaves will be changing colors and falling to the ground. Perhaps, before long our thoughts, even for a few hours, will be on a happy place like Thanksgiving and not the corona virus. On December 21 the process will all reverse. We will begin to gain back those precious minutes of daylight and it will remind us of the promise that spring is on its way.

The amazing part of all of this is how subtly it happens. It is true of the calendar and the hours of daylight we experience, and it is true of so many small things in our lives. We take in a few too many calories and before long we wonder why our clothes are tighter. Humidity? I mean they do call it the air you can wear. We miss a few days of exercise and wonder why our energy level suddenly drops. We miss a few days talking with our Dearest Father and wonder why He feels like a stranger. We miss our time with the Book and find ourselves bumbling our way through life. Sigh. It is all too familiar and all too predictable.

The secret, I believe, is to be aware. I have one of those “Joe Cool” Apple watches that tells me more than I need or want to know. One of the things it tells me is the time of the sunrise and sunset. A few days ago the sun was setting at 8:06 pm and I knew that meant before long it would be setting before 8:00 pm. Sure enough, it is. Whether it is exercise or calories or prayer or reading the Book, if we will pay attention we will have fewer surprises and consequences. I like what Moses said. He wrote, “Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts.” You know, wisdom to watch what we eat and how much we exercise. Wisdom to stop and talk to God and read His Book. Yup…good, good advice.

Paul, one of the writers of the New Testament, put it another way. He said we should make the most of everyday, not living as someone who is foolish but as someone who is wise. He goes on to say we should do this because the days are evil—or full of difficulties and challenges. The fact is we all get 1440 minutes a day—no more, no less. The hours of daylight may change, but the time has been set for eternity. 1440 opportunities to make the most of life, to get it right. And, because we are imperfect humans, we can use some of those minutes to talk to our Dearest Father about our warts and failures. We can snuggle up close as He whispers assurances of love and forgiveness. We can just rest and know…that He’s got this.

Family, Grace, gratitude, life, Scripture, thankful, travel

Mustang Sally

Posted on August 9, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires.” Psalm 37:4

It was a dream come true. Several years ago, I was invited to speak at a conference way up north in Illinois. How far north? Well just about as far as you can go. It seems you could see the Artic circle from where we were going. For some reason, it might have been the car was due an oil change or just because, I decided to rent a car for the trip. I checked the local Enterprise car rental and they had a great rate, so I booked one online. About 4:00 pm I went to the car rental place to pick up my plain Jane little car and that’s when I found that God had sent a love note.

I went into the office and waited just a moment for the agent to help me. She shuffled some papers around and said, “You know I don’t have a compact car to give you. I’m going to have to give you a Mustang convertible instead.” I couldn’t believe it. I had wanted to drive a Mustang since I was 12. While I didn’t get to own it permanently, for three whole days it was mine. I felt like I had just won the lottery!

We finished up the paperwork and she handed me the keys. I walked outside and there she sat. A new Mustang convertible with all the bells and whistles! I felt cool just holding the keys. I mashed the button on the remote and lights came on and the doors unlocked. I opened the door and slid into the seat and was pretty certain I had died and gone to heaven. One of the first things I noticed was the quality of this American made car. Things had certainly changed since the 70’s.

The Mustang had more incredibly cool gadgets than I had ever seen in one car. Gadgets like an incredible audio system, totally cool wheels, auto/manual shift, backup camera, keyless entry and start and on and on. It seemed that everything you could possibly want on a car was there. This thing was “tricked out”. For those who don’t know what that term means, it is something like it was customized–loaded with options and believe me it was! Not only had God given me the car of my dreams for three whole days but He had sent one that was loaded!

Well, we made the trip and I played Mr. Cool the entire time. Sunglasses, my best smile and the coy look that said, “Oh yeah, it’s mine.” I just didn’t share that it was only mine for three days. Just as all good things have to come to an end, on Monday my Cinderella Mustang had to go back to Enterprise. However, I will never forget the time that God sent me a Mustang to drive. It gave new meaning to that place in the Bible where it says, “Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires.”

Now imagine my surprise when I went to the Ford website and discovered that my Mustang wasn’t “tricked out” at all. In fact, all those cool features were “standard.” In other words, every Mustang had those features included with no extra charge. How about that–buy the car and get the options–not some plain Jane, “let’s crawl to the next light Mustang”, but one that caused people to look…”a head turner.” Buy the car and get the cool throw in with the deal. I can remember when the base price got you four wheels and engine. Not so anymore. Ford did a great job in the quality and what you got for the money–but not to the point I’m ready to go out and buy one.

Here’s the deal: God trumps Ford hands down–not even in the ball park. I sometimes wonder if we understand all that we get when we receive God’s amazing grace through His Son Jesus: unconditional love, peace beyond understanding, unlimited acceptance, an incredible purpose and reason to live, the opportunity to make a difference–to be a part of something so big that we can’t even understand it all. And that is not just for the Billy Grahams of the world but rather for every believer, every follower of Christ. Amazingly, that’s not even the tip of the iceberg!

Some people love to drop names—you know, they are talking and they will say how they know so and so. Well, check this out. If you know Jesus, you know the creator of it all. And you just don’t know Him…you know Him up front and personal. And His Father is your Father and He is your Dearest Father. He just waits for you to talk with Him every day. And He enjoys blessing you. Be sure and thank Him for the fact that the life He gives us is not barebones but loaded to the max. You know, when God does something, He always does it well and does it big–how about that?

As you journey this week, how about spending some time celebrating and thanking God for His incredible, unbelievable salvation? And if you get just a tad overwhelmed—and honestly who doesn’t—just remember who you know and Who knows you. You can rest in Him. He’s got this.

Family, Grace, gratitude, life, loving others, Military memories, Scripture, Southern born, thankful, wisdom

It’s a “Dippity-Do-Dah” Day

Posted on August 6, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

If we say, “We have fellowship with him,” and yet we walk in darkness, we are lying and are not practicing the truth.” 1 John 1:6

Dippity-do dah, dippy day, my oh my, what a wonderful day! I joined the Air Force back in 1972 and in so many ways it was a different world. At that time longer hair was still very much in vogue. It seemed the only guys with shorter haircuts were either born in the 1920’s or in the military. I was the latter.

It was also a different day in the way people view the military. The country was coming out of the Vietnam era and sadly many saw veterans and the active military in a dark light. I can well remember walking around town and getting the “one of those” look. While I was never ashamed of being in the military, in fact, I was proud to serve, I did want to be cool—part of the in-crowd and short hair just wasn’t in. But you know the old saying, “Where there is a will, there is a way.” Hello Dippity-do.

It’s funny, I don’t remember anyone else doing it nor do I remember how I started. I found this hair stuff called, “Dippity-do.” It was a gel like product and depending on how much you applied, it would make your hair stay where you put it. So I bought a jar and slowly I let the hair on the top of my head and sides grow out. I would wakeup in the morning and put this stuff, in fact a lot of this stuff, on my hair. I would comb it kinda on top of my head and toward the back. The effect was—well, effective. The funny part is when this stuff dried out it made my hair as solid as a rock. Of course, my mom always said I had a hard head.

I found that I could have the required white-wall around my ears and have all this hair glued down to the top of my head. When I got off work, I would go take a shower, wash this stuff out and believe it or not have enough hair to totally cover my ears. I looked like any other guy in the early 1970’s. Even as I write this I’m saying, “What?” But believe me it worked. I looked like a military guy during the day and a regular off-the-street guy at night. Looking back, it was weird.

Even stranger I worked in the command section of my squadron and to show how effective my ruse was, no one said anything. It looked, and I guess was, regulation. I remember one day walking in the local mall and coming straight toward me was my squadron commander, Major Hobbs. We passed within five feet of each other and he didn’t even recognize me. Yup—G.I. Joe by day and a 70’s hipster at night. Looking back there probably was a word for it. It was probably pretty hypocritical.

The word hypocrite means to “play the part” or to “wear the mask.” It was used to describe actors in ancient Greece who were one thing on stage and another off the stage. The one thing I remember is that I always felt a certain amount of fear while doing this. There was always the “what if I get called in and don’t have time to plaster my hair down” thing. What if my commander and my first sergeant saw me and did recognize me? I knew they respected me and what would happen to that respect? It’s the feeling you get when you are one thing one time and another thing later.

Well, finally I figured it wasn’t worth it and I’ll tell you that story another time, but the bottom line is I went and got a regular haircut. Two things happened almost immediately. First, I felt free. The fear of the wrong person seeing me at the wrong time was suddenly gone. It was like a weight was taken off my shoulders. The second thing that happened was I discovered that in spite of what the culture said, I was proud to be in the Air Force and that haircut identified me as part of a special family and team. It wasn’t something to be ashamed of…it was something to be proud of. And the best part, the girl I was dating, who I later married, thought I was even cuter. Now for the funny part. I have been out of the military now for 36 years and I never, not even once, grew my hair out. I decided I like shorter hair. More than that…I decided I like being real.

So, what about you? What is it in your life where you “wear the mask?” What is it in your life where you have decided to pretend—to be something you aren’t? While you find that in every aspect of life, sadly it’s also common in the Jesus follower world. People say one thing and do another—people who act one way on Sunday and another the rest of week. If I learned anything from my Dippity-do world is that authenticity beats a plastic mask every time.

John, one of the guys who followed Jesus in the Bible, said it pretty well. He said, “If we say, “We have fellowship with him,” and yet we walk in darkness, we are lying and are not practicing the truth.” In other words, if we say we are one thing and really are another—we are just living a lie. It is better to be real than fake. It is better to be authentic than counterfeit. I may have fooled my commander that day but I never fool God when I choose to be one thing in public and another in private. But the one thing I love about God is that He never rejects me. He is never ashamed to call me His child. I can always rest in Him and more than that, He can handle who I am—Dippity-do and all. He’s got this.

Family, fear, gratitude, life, prayer, Scripture, Southern born, thankful, wisdom

He’s Got This

Posted on August 5, 2020August 4, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

I like love notes. My wife Judy and I have been married for a long, long time. Sometimes people ask how it is that we have stayed married to each other for forty-four years. It could be that I am an incredible husband but the truth is Judy is an incredible wife. She is pretty patient with me when I mess up and well, that’s quite frequently. She also has a great servant’s heart. She is constantly doing the small things that just say, “I love you.” In that way she is a lot like God.

It always impresses me when God does something really big in my world. It causes me to just stop and be amazed. Our lives are filled with stories that show the handiwork of God. Each one is a love note and each one bears His signature. Whether it is getting though a particularly hard time or fulfilling a dream, He is always there. The trick is learning to see it.

Back in 1981, Judy and I were living in Warrensburg, Missouri. We were attending the First Baptist Church there and having the time of our lives. God had blessed us with a wonderful group of friends and we were serving in several ministries there. Two of those involved music. We were teaching preschool choir (those songs still roll around in my head) and both of us were in the adult choir. Our worship leader, Dan Tracy, was a great guy and great leader. Every choir practice and performance was spiritually magical.

One of the things that Dan did was lead a choir tour every Spring. The church would rent a bus for the weekend and our choir would sing at several churches. In the Spring of 1981, Judy and I were brand new parents. Our first daughter Rebecca had been born that January. She was obviously too young to leave with a sitter so Judy and I agreed she would stay home and I would go with the choir. So on a Thursday afternoon, she took me to church to leave with the choir. We were all excited, but I kinda felt bad leaving Judy behind.

Finally, just about everyone was on the bus and it was time to go. Someone, it may have been Dan, was locking the church door when he happened to hear the phone ringing. For some reason, he stopped and went back inside to answer it. It really didn’t make a lot of since because it was after hours and it was a larger church so people called all the time. Regardless, he answered the call. It was for me.

Now before the story goes any further you need to understand that most of our family had no clue what state we lived in. Most of them probably didn’t know where Missouri was on the map. Certainly, no one knew we were attending First Baptist and certainly no one knew I was there late on a Thursday afternoon leaving on a choir tour. Yet the call was for me. It was Judy’s brother…her father had died suddenly of a heart attack and we needed to go home to Georgia.

Now pause just a moment and be amazed. No one knew what church we were attending, it was after hours, I was moments away from leaving for the tour and someone just happened to hear the phone and answer it. Amazing. It was obviously very hard news but to this day Judy and I both marvel at how our Father orchestrated this. It was as if He said, “Judy, you have a difficult journey ahead of you but I am putting this together so you will know that I love you and I will walk with you.” And yes, it was as if He signed it, “Love, Dearest Daddy.”

It was a difficult journey that left us both shocked and surprised. Judy’s daddy had just been with us for Rebecca’s birth and suddenly, he moved to heaven. But even in those sad, heartbroken moments, we knew He was not leaving us to walk through this hard time alone. We trusted that He would show us the way as we walked this new, unplanned path. And He never left us to walk alone.

How about you? First, I hope you have made the decision to ask God to forgive your sins and be your Father. It is the greatest and best decision ever. Again, it has nothing to do with religion or church. It has everything to do with a relationship with the Creator of everything. Second, if you have done that I hope you will make it a habit to look and see the handiwork of your Father in everyday life. He is constantly at work—in the good times and hard times. He is at work when it is obvious and when it is not.

It is one of those verses that a lot of people throw around but it is just packed with truth. It says, “we know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” Now, it doesn’t say that everything is good but that God can bring good from all circumstances. God in fact did get us safely through a twenty-three hour drive to South Georgia with a six week old baby girl in the back seat. God did show us His love through an amazing phone call. And the best part—He does it for each of His kids. So, snuggle up and rest in Him. He loves you and He’s got this.

Family, life, Scripture, thankful, wisdom

Murphy’s Law

Posted on July 29, 2020July 28, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom.”
Song of Solomon 2:15

Good ole Murphy. You have probably heard about a thing called Murphy’s Law. The bottom line is that if something can go wrong…it probably will. I have been a strong believer in Murphy’s Law for a long time. In fact, I bet if I checked ancestry.com this Murphy fella is somehow related to me. Now I know if you are one of those optimistic folks you are not a believer. You probably don’t believe in Big Foot either. Well, hey, I’m a believer. Let me give you a couple of examples.

I have a 100 foot water hose that we use to water plants, wash the car, all kind of things. When I am done with the hose and it is time to roll it back up, there is a 90% probably that the hose will catch on something—a flower pot, a rock, a crack in the sideway, or even an ant. When it catches, it kinks and I will have to walk out and unkink it. And…there is 67.5 % chance that it will kink again. There you go…Murphy’s Law.

Are you up for one more? So, let’s say I am installing a light fixture in the bedroom and I have to screw three screws in to hold it. There is a 94.75 percent chance that I will drop at least one of the screws from atop the six foot ladder, that it will roll 7.5 feet over toward the wall and that it will drop into the heating or air conditioning vent. AND there is a 100% chance that I will not have a replacement screw AND a 84% chance that no one in town will either. See, it is Murphy’s Law—undeniable, irrefutable, you gotta believe it, proof.

Now the good thing about Murphy’s Law is that most of the things it involves won’t kill you or even cause serious injury …but it will definitely drive you crazy. I’ve lived long enough to come to the conclusion that it isn’t the major disasters in life that steal our joy, rob us of peace, or make us want to move to Montana. No, it is the little things. One of my favorite verses is tucked away in one of those Bible books we never read—the Song of Solomon. Trust me—don’t read it to your kids before bedtime—or maybe anytime.

Well, right in the middle of the book is this jewel, “Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom.” The author, who is a guy named Solomon, is saying he is not worried about a herd of elephants stomping and ruining his grapevines. Nope. He realized the danger is from those pesky little foxes that come along and eat the harvest one grape at a time. One.grape.at.a.time.

In these crazy days that have become some kind of new normal there are some elephants out there. The reality is that the corona virus can be very dangerous. There is a pretty small chance that I will get it. There is an even smaller chance that it will kill me. But there is just about a 100% chance that it and all its circumstances have and will mess with me. And that’s the problem—worrying about things that mess with me, things I can’t change, and the Rolaids stock goes right through the roof. Those stinking, pesky little foxes. We should be wary of the elephants, but let’s not give too much time and energy to the little foxes.

The foxes can and will mess with us. If we allow them they can cause us to be frustrated and even angry. They can mess with our peace, our joy, our relationships and even our sleep. But the truth is our God is greater than any elephant or any fox. All we have to do us trust Him—to lean into Him. The writer of Proverbs says it this way, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and don’t lean into your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.”

There you go…trust and acknowledge and He will straighten this mess out. So, the next time the hose kinks or the screw disappears just remember Murphy is at work. The choice of what we do when he visits is ours. I think we should just probably introduce him to our Friend Jesus. We should let him know there isn’t room for he and Jesus in our circle of friends. Someone has to go and Murphy—it is you. So long Murphy. I’m gonna go rest in Jesus. He’s got this.

Family, Grace, gratitude, life, loving others, prayer, Scripture, thankful, wisdom

The Tax Man Cometh

Posted on July 28, 2020July 27, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

For God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

It was from the tax guy or gal and it was waiting for me in the mailbox when I got home. Judy is usually the mail checker but she was out of town. I went into the house and “it” was a letter from the tax assessor’s office. They told me they had driven by my house and they really liked it—a lot. And, since they liked it so much, they decided it was worth more than they had previously thought. A whole lot more. They blessed us with a reassessment of value and the grand prize was that we got to pay more property taxes. Yay. Well, not really but it did give me a great opportunity to learn about how much God loves me. Here’s what happened.

If you have been here before you probably know, my day job is being a pastor. It is something that I really enjoy. My favorite thing is sharing THE story but also sharing stories. I love to take big truths and present them in a way that anyone can grasp them. I think that is what Jesus did and I figure if He did it, I should too.

This past week I was sharing the story from the Bible about how four guys take this paralyzed guy to see Jesus. When they got there, the house was stuffed with people. There was no way they were going to get in. They decided to take this guy up on the roof, make a hole and then lower him right in front of Jesus. It was crazy, it was radical, and it was different, but they believed two things. They believed that Jesus could heal their friend and that their friend was worth the effort. We all could use friends like that.

They began to haul this guy up the ladder to the roof. Can you even imagine how difficult and challenging that was? I mean how do you keep a paralyzed guy from falling off his mat while climbing a ladder? Well, somehow they pulled it off. When they got to the top, they began to remove the thatch first and then break apart the mud and tiles. After they had made a hole big enough to get this guy through—they lowered him down and he landed right in front of Jesus. I bet there was more than one person who wondered what in the world was going on. I bet too some people were grumbling about tearing up a perfectly good roof to get some poor, paralyzed guy in front of Jesus. I mean if he had been some rich guy… maybe… but a nobody? And that’s what “rung my bell”.

You see to those four guys and to Jesus—this guy wasn’t a nobody—he was a somebody. He was worth way more than a hole in the roof. In fact, through the eyes of Jesus, every soul is incredibly valuable—including yours. And that’s when the reassessment thing came into focus. Remember, when the tax folks drove by my house? They liked what they saw and they increased my tax assessment. Their assessment really only meant I get to pay more taxes. It really doesn’t mean my house is actually worth what they said.

You see, I learned a while back that anything you or I own—our house, our car, is worth only what someone is willing to pay for it. That’s the bottomline. So, here’s the deal. God drove by your soul, my soul and assigned a value to it—what it was worth to Him and what He was willing to pay to redeem it. Do you know what that was? Well, we find it in the Bible. It says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Get that—everlasting (as in eternal) life. God’s assessment of our value to Him was the life of His very own Son. He allowed His Son to die on a Roman cross because He somehow counted us worth it. He just loved us that much.

Well, the end of the story for the paralyzed guy was pretty amazing. Jesus first calls him son—not worthless, not broken, but son. Then He forgives the guy’s sin—not what he wanted… but what he needed—and finally, He tells him to stand up, take his mat and go home. Three seemingly impossible things. But with Jesus, as you can probably guess, nothing is really impossible. The guy jumps up, takes his mat and leaves as the crowd is standing in disbelief. They said they have never seen anything like that—and they hadn’t. The key thing is that the guy had to not only believe, but also act on what he believed. Each one of us must do the same. We have to believe that Jesus is Who He says He is and can do what He says He can do. When we believe that—we are forgiven and God becomes our Father. Truth be known, I wasn’t too happy about my reassessment. However, I was glad it taught me a new way to look at how much God loves me…and you. When we are down on ourselves, when all we can see are failures and warts, when we want to give up and quit, we are reminded that our Heavenly Father thinks we are worth a lot. You see, I’m learning that His opinion is the only one that matters. So why not claim that for yourself and take a rest in Him today. Because you know—He’s got this.

Family, fear, Grace, gratitude, life, Scripture, thankful, wisdom

Call a Plumber

Posted on July 27, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

I knew it, I just knew it. A month or so ago, my wife told me that she had dropped her special eye liner down the drain in our bathroom. It was the kind that was encased in a holder like a pencil and one day the eye thingy just slid right out. Now, I’m not sure what an eye liner even does but I know it was important to her. And, since it was important to her, it was important to me.

With my limited, and I do mean limited, knowledge of plumbing and drains, I did know that there is a thing called a trap on a drain. It is designed to catch things and keep them from going wherever the water goes…the place of no return. I also knew checking the trap was not a big deal. You unscrew a couple of things and when you are done you screw it back on. No deal, right? Uh, well, usually.

Well, I took it off and dumped it out. There was some really ugly stuff in there but none of it had to do with eyes. So after cleaning it out I screwed it back on and checked to make sure every thing was nice and dry. It wasn’t. One of the joints was leaking. So I took it apart 3,291 times and 3,291 times it leaked. I finally called it quits and asked my real plumber son-in-law to swing by and check it out. The diagnosis was simple.

The problem was a cheaply made part from China that was apparently barely staying together before the eye-liner thing. The answer was to buy a new part, screw it on and bam—you are back in business. So, I go to store number one and buy the part the guy says I need. I bring it home, take it apart, wrong part. Bummer. So I went to another store and bought another part that the guy said I needed. I brought it home, I took it apart and indeed it was the WRONG part.

If nothing else, I am persistent. I went to a third store where the nice guy behind the counter sold me a whole bag of parts at a very good price. “Yay!” I said. I went home, opened my big bag of parts and discovered indeed that it would fix a problem, for someone, somewhere—but not my problem. They didn’t fit either. I gave up and went on vacation.

Sometimes a trip to Florida with family will give renewed clarity and determination. When I got home, I decided if I just tried harder, if I just adjusted and twisted enough I could make one of all those parts work. Well, I got on the floor, dumped all the parts on the floor and took it all part again and…failed. Miserably. In fact, instead of one leak I now had two. By now I was certain of two things. I was not a plumber and I was very glad God called me to be a preacher.

Well, I decided to give it one more try. This time I took the old broken parts with me to the story. Store one and two were closed but store three was open. I walked in and the nice guy said, “Can I help you?” I told him I honestly wasn’t sure. I gave him the short story of how I now owned a small plumbing supply business and I needed this part—and I showed him the dirty, slimy old part. He reached down and pulled a bag full of parts off the shelf and together we looked. There, inside the bag, was the part I needed. He saw it, I saw it. Things were looking up.

I bought the bag of parts and took them home. I managed to rig the other leak with some electrical tape—hey it worked—and then I put on the new part, the right part. It took exactly one minute to screw on the right part and ta-da—it didn’t leak. Success. Victory. I was one happy shade-tree plumber. Of course I now own two bags full of parts that I don’t need—yet—and probably spent enough to pay a plumber to fix it but it was done and I was the hero! I’m going down today to apply for my plumber’s card.

I bet you are wondering what today’s big truth is all about. We could talk about frustration. We could talk about determination. We could talk about some other word that ends with “ion.” But the big truth is this. I kept trying to put the wrong part in the right place and no matter how hard I tried—it just wasn’t going to fit. It was like trying to put a square peg in a round hole—it wasn’t gonna happen.

Of couse, we do this all the time in life with God. How many times do we have an issue or a problem and we are sure we can cram something into that place that doesn’t fit and be happy? How many new cars, houses, and televisions have been bought trying to scratch an itch that only God can scratch? Sometimes we just know if we “get religion” or start going to church or start this or stop that everything will be ok. Our life, our marriages, our fears will all be better or disappear. Those may be good things but they are not THE thing.

The thing is a personal relationship with Jesus. You may have heard how He came to bring light into a dark world—including your dark world. You may have even heard how He came to set things right between you and God—in fact, make it possible for you to call God Father. It’s all true and it’s all right there in the Book. Paul, one of the guys who wrote a chunk of the Bible, said “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” That just means we are saved by believing and not doing. It’s really quite amazing. So if you have a plumbing problem…save yourself some time and frustration and call your son-in-law the plumber. If he isn’t one, hire one. But if your life is a leaky mess, call on Jesus. No matter the problem, no matter how big the problem—He is the fixer. He can take care of it and you. Why? Because He loves you—a lot. You can rest in Him when life wears you down. You can turn to Him when life gets crazy because…He’s got this.

Family, gratitude, life, loving others, missions, prayer, Scripture, thankful, travel, wisdom

“Just Like Papa”

Posted on July 24, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” Hebrews 10:24

It is one of my favorite pictures. It was several years ago when Blake and Sarah were stationed in Savanah, Georgia. He serves in the United States Army and they are one of thousands of families who make the sacrifice to go where they are sent and do what they are called to do. Now, of all the places the Army can sent a family, Savanah was good duty. The oldest city in Georgia and located in the Southeastern side of Georgia it is rich in heritage and about 25 miles from the beach. Not bad.

Well, one day Judy suggested we should go down and see them. Let’s see…family, grits, history and pralines (in case you don’t know they are a crisp or semi-crisp candy typically consisting of butter, brown sugar, and pecans. You need to try them.) Yup…sounds like a great idea. So we load up the van and off we go. Its about an eleven hour drive and we broke it up into two days because we are not as young as we used to be and to us the journey is part of the adventure.

When we arrive in Savanah, there are the usual “big hellos” and “what’s happening?” Soon after come the next two big questions—what are we going to eat and where do we want to go. We decide to go to the historic downtown. If you have never been to Savanah it is hard to describe this special part of the city. It is a series of parks, literally block after block, filled with trees, flowers, monuments, and fountains. Oh, and there is a Five Guys Burgers and Fries nearby. It can’t get any better. It’s like the Southern part of heaven.

After three or four blocks of strolling I decide it is time to sit down. So I wander over to an empty park bench and sit a spell. As I sometimes do, I lean back, locking my hands behind my head and just relax. The birds are singing, the squirrels are playing and life is good. And then, it got better. While I am sitting there doing my relaxing thing, my grandson Will, who was about four, comes over to the park bench and eyes his Papa. What he does next is recorded in a photograph and in my heart.

Will, with a bit of a struggle, climbs up and sits on the park bench. He then gives me a look, raises his hands behind his head, locking his fingers. He is being like his Papa. He is doing what he sees me doing. Judy, with the keen eye of a great photographer and grandmother, snaps the picture. It was only when we got home did we see the true beauty of the picture. Today, a copy sits on my desk in my home office and it is indeed one of my treasures.

Will reminded me that day there are always people watching and looking and often imitating us. Sometimes they are family, sometimes they are fellow church members, sometimes neighbors, sometimes even strangers. But they are watching and looking to see what we are going to do, how we are going to react and then they do what we do. That might be the reason when one of Jesus’ disciples ran—then they all did. It might be why when one shouted “crucify Him,” they all did. This picture makes me pause and ask, “What are my kids, my grandkids, my friends, the yet to be friends around me, seeing when they see me?” What do they see at the park, in Wal-Mart and yes, on Facebook? Hmmm.

The guy who wrote Hebrews says that we should consider—we should weigh carefully—how we may spur one another on toward love and good works.” In other words, the things we do and say should cause others to do good—and not to do evil. We are to be beacons of light shining out into a dark, rough, and dangerous sea. I guess I really love that picture because of the innocence of it all. But what if, what if, that same picture showed me being hateful or rude. What brings me joy would, and should, then bring tears. Today is a new day. I like new days. New days say I get another chance. Let’s use this day with the knowledge that people are watching and we get to show them the way to get it right—not wrong. I know, it is a daunting task…but we have a great, big God pulling for us. Just like I got to set an innocent example for Will, so Jesus has set a sterling example for us. Just follow the leader and you can’t go wrong. So, climb up on the bench, sit a spell and rest. He’s got this.

Family, Grace, gratitude, life, loving others, prayer, Scripture, thankful, wisdom

Chucking Rocks

Posted on July 23, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

When they kept on questioning Him, He straightened up and said to them, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7

I should have listened. I was a pretty good kid when I was young but let’s be honest. Pretty good doesn’t mean perfect and pretty good doesn’t mean not mischievous. I think it means I was somewhere close to normal. The only thing is, normal can still get you into trouble.

One day I was with the family and I’m pretty sure we were at a laundromat. Apparently the washing machine had broken down and we had to do the wash at the mat. My daddy and I were out in the parking lot while mama was washing the clothes. I was about nine and bored and that is not a good combination. The parking lot was gravel and all those rocks just seemed to be saying, “Throw me.” So, I obliged.

At first it was a little toss here and there but the more I threw, the more I wanted to throw. First it was here and there but then I started taking aim. Several things were lying along the edge of the parking lot and they made great targets but then I got an idea. If hitting a can was good, imagine hitting a moving target. So I started chucking the rocks in the direction of the road and at the cars passing by. Bad idea.

Now, if you are going to chuck rocks at a car, every nine year old rock chucker knows you don’t just chuck your rock with obvious intention. You ease into it. Well, I started easing into it and before long my rocks were landing dangerously close to cars passing by. My Daddy thought it was kinda accidental and it garnered a “Dewayne, be careful to not hit the cars.” He hadn’t caught onto my real plan to “ping a hub cap.” Anyway, I kept chucking so he upped the warning.

“Dewayne, listen, don’t throw rocks at the cars.” He had finally caught on and I should have quit while I was ahead. I finally got close enough so that we entered “Final Jeopardy.” “Question—what happens if you hit a car? Answer—I’m gonna give you a spanking.” Yeah, well, you can probably guess where this is going. I chucked a rock and hit a car going by and it was “Final Jeopardy.” Daddy got mad, the driver got mad and I got in trouble.

Well, Daddy was able to talk to the driver and he promised him the “grapes of wrath” would fall when we got home. As he drove off, daddy explained about the “grapes of wrath.” Translated, it meant I was gonna get a spanking when we got home and it wasn’t gonna be a little one. So, as soon as we pulled into our driveway, I ran into the house and hid under the dining room table. Soon, I heard Daddy’s voice, “Where are you, Dewayne?” I felt like Adam and Eve in the garden after they had chucked rocks at God and decided to sin. God was looking for them and they were hiding too.

And that’s where things get fuzzy. I don’t remember the spanking which means I probably got grace instead. It probably means that Daddy and I had a long talk about chucking rocks at cars and how that was not a good thing to do. It must have worked because I don’t think I ever chucked another rock at a car…at least one that was moving. That day I learned about obedience and how it has a lot less consequences than disobedience. I also learned about grace. Grace is when you deserve a spanking but instead you get a talking. But I also learned about rock chucking. I learned that it was ok to chuck rocks at things like stumps and cans, but it is not ok to chuck rocks at things like cars. When you do there are consequences…big ones.

Now, there’s another kind of rock chucking that I’m still learning about and that is chucking rocks at people. I’m not talking about waylaying someone with a stone but rather waylaying them with our judgmental acts and words. It’s what we do when we see someone fail and we decide to make ourselves feel better by knocking them down.

Jesus ran into this when some religious people found a woman sinning big. They dragged her into the middle of a crowd and wanted to stone her. They asked Jesus what He would do. He told them that the person that had never sinned should chuck the first rock. Well, slowly they all walked away because they had all messed up. “Where are your accusers?” Jesus asked the woman. She replied that they had left…and indeed they had.

The only two left were her, the sinner and Him, the One who had never sinned. He could have chucked rocks but instead He loved her and forgave her. She deserved the rocks but He gave her grace. I like that. A lot. He dismissed her a smile and a word of “now don’t go on sinning” and the rocks stayed on the ground…right where they belong. So, I am grateful for grace…and you should be too. If we have experienced grace we should extend some too. You see, rocks make great parking lots and driveways but are terrible weapons. They need to stay in the quarry or on the ground. My daddy showed grace then and my Dearest Daddy shows it every day. We should too. However, it’s good to know when we are hiding under the dining room table and He calls, we can come out and sit in His lap and learn about the consequences of sin but also the wonders of grace. So, come on out from your hiding place. We can rest in Him because, “He’s got this.”

Family, fear, life, Scripture, thankful, wisdom

Goose-Land, Part 2 “I Quit”

Posted on July 22, 2020 by Dewayne Taylor

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
Psalm 139:14

“I Quit.” I could almost hear the words coming from his beak. Yesterday was “walk in the park day” and the ducks and geese were doing their thing. If you haven’t made a trip to the park to just watch the geese and ducks you really should. It is so interesting to see how they interact with one another. There are a couple of stories at gritswithgrace.com if you would like to go back and read them.

Yesterday I was in lap two of three and I saw something that really caught my attention and captured my heart. You probably know that geese like to hang together. They will be “gaggling” together and suddenly, it is as if someone, the gaggle leader will give a nod or a honk and everyone will burst into flight. They rise from the ground or the water as one, like a flight of aircraft from a military flight. They quickly take formation and off they go into the wild blue yonder.

As I was walking across the stone bridge at the park the order was given and about seven geese took off. I was pretty close and it was pretty impressive. With a flush of honking and flapping, they rose into the sky as one. Goose One, the flight leader carefully led the group over the bridge and down to the far end of the pond. They took off as one and they flew as one all except…one.

As they flew by at full power I happened to notice one of the group still on the ground. He was a young adult goose but definitely old enough to take to the air. His body was well groomed, every feather in place. From where I stood he looked like he could…he should be airworthy. But as his friends took flight…he took a look around. There they went and there he sat. It was what happened next that was so unusual. He suddenly started to run. Paralleling the edge of the pond he started running as fast as his little legs would carry him. It seemed he was sayings, “Hey guys, wait for me.”

He ran for about fifteen yards and then he stopped and went down the bank into the water, paddling furiously, heading for where he thought his friends and family had gone. The last time I saw him he was still paddling away shouting, “Hey, wait for me.” After getting over the amusement of watching him waddle and paddle, my heart was captured. I found myself asking the obvious question, “Why?”

Why waddle when you can soar? Why paddle when you can fly? Why get left behind when you could be in the middle of the party? I am not an expert in goose anatomy but he had all the equipment to fly and all the equipment seemed to be working. I really don’t know, but it seemed I heard him muttering as he waddled with all his might. Although I’m not fluent in goose, it seemed he was saying, “I can’t, I can’t, I can’t.” And then, right before he went into the water he said, “I quit.” How sad.

He was made to fly. He was made to soar, but he chose, he settled, for waddling and paddling. He chose for second best. You see, you can be the best waddler in the world and that is fine…unless you were made to soar. The view from the ground is never as magnificent as the view from the sky. If his equipment was broken, if it was just a matter of a few more flight lessons well, that would be a different story. But what if it was just a matter of not believing—in himself and the One who made him?

If you look around, and maybe as close as the bathroom mirror, you might see someone who stopping believing. You might see someone who has tried and failed enough that they no longer believe anything is possible. You might see someone who stopped believing that God makes masterpieces and started believing that God made a mess. Well, let me tell you something. God doesn’t make junk and He doesn’t make messes. The Psalmist said it right, “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”

Fearfully and wonderfully made. That is you and that is me. If you find yourself on the shore, waddling when you designed to soar…start believing again. Start believing in you, start believing in Him and start believing that with Him…all things are possible. Don’t let the circumstances around you right now—the division, the virus, the uncertainty keep you on the ground. You were made to fly, to soar! Why not crawl up into the lap of your Dearest Father, rest in Him and just believe? Believe the truth…that He’s got this.