The P.E. teacher questioned Debra daily. Was she okay, dressing out for gym class? Were the bruises noticeable, or was this a “good” day? Depending on her answer, Debra would suit out or not. Her beatings at the hands of her father were not uncommon, but during that era, those things were “hush-hush.” At the age of 16, her father told her that she needed to have sex to keep her from being “a frozen fish” like her mother. So, Debra did.

When dates brought her home five minutes late, more than once her dad met Debra on the front porch and physically dragged her into the house while her dates watched from their cars, horrified. Punching her in the face and spanking her with his policeman’s belt were not unusual, she, the prime target who protected her two siblings whenever she could.

Her mother offered no support, daily calling her a “stupid idiot” and many times holding her arms while her father lashed away. When her dad, drunk and confusing her with his wife, held her head in the toilet, enough was enough. The police were called, but because Debra’s dad was “one of theirs,” nothing happened.

This past October, Debra’s father, at the age of 75, lie in a hospital bed, dying. His daughter visited him several times, the final one, devastating. When it came time to leave, as Debra shared, “My dad’s eyes were evil, like a demon was speaking to me. ‘Get out. And never come back.’ That was the last time I saw my father alive.”

I listened intently as this lady, a beautiful, talented, successful artist/esthetician I met through a mutual friend, shared her story, the craziest part being, her dad “knew Jesus.” I had questions. Was he bi-polar? Demon-possessed? Debra didn’t know. She knew only that her childhood was cruel and painful.

“So, why is it that you are so normal, so fun, so engaging, so “together?” I asked.

Her answer? “God.”

Debra went on to share that from the time she was little and the beatings and emotional abuse progressed, she would go outside and find a reclusive area where she could have alone- time to talk to God. She admits that it makes no sense, since her parents did not take her to church or teach her about God. “I just knew He cared,” she said.

Should you walk into her salon today, you would be greeted with an open Bible lying on a countertop. Her faith is real, and she is not ashamed of it. I told her that I had no doubt that God would use her story to bless others. She laughed and said that more times than she could count, clients had shared their personal ordeals but concluded with, “What would you know? It’s obvious your life has been perfect.” They, like me, were shocked to hear otherwise.

Her mother, still alive, now depends on Debra for physical and emotional support. Debra said that she has chosen forgiveness, but “sometimes I have to tell my mom that she is not being nice when she berates me or focuses on the negative.” I asked if her parents ever apologized or asked for forgiveness. Debra said that was not part of their vocabulary.

The best part of the story was how Debra turned her childhood trauma into good. She, determined not to allow her children to have similar memories, daily affirms and blesses them. Happily married to a Florida firefighter, her life is all about being an encouragement to others, to let them know that they too can overcome. As Debra said, “That’s what God wants for all of us.”

Have You Been to the Woodshed?

My godly parents believed in the saying, “spare the rod, spoil the child.” My parents must have loved me a lot because I sure wasn’t spoiled.

Believers are the children of God, so we should be thankful when our heavenly Father disciplines us. The Bible compares this to how we discipline our own children. As parents, we have a responsibility to train them in the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6). If we don’t step up to the plate and accept this assignment, we’ll have an undisciplined and untrained child who will grow up to be an adult with these same characteristics.

As born-again Christians, we should accept God’s discipline with joy and quickly make the changes required to become more like the Master. God will always let you know if you’ve done something that displeases Him, and that is your warning light to make the situation right. God’s discipline can be severe and very unpleasant. We tend to ignore Him at first and harden our heart against the pangs of conscience. We need to learn to listen to His voice and obey in order to avoid severe correction.

In Daniel Chapter 4, there’s an amazing Old Testament account of God’s severity. Because of the sin of pride, the King of Babylon spent seven years out behind the woodshed. Daniel 4:29,30 NKJV: “…He (King Nebuchadnezzar) was walking about the royal palace of Babylon. The king spoke, saying, ‘Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?’” The very same hour he spoke those prideful words, God took away his sanity and he was driven from society. He ate grass like a cow and was drenched with the dew of heaven. He lived this way until his hair was as long as eagles’ feathers and his nails were like birds’ claws.

When his sanity returned, he was restored as ruler of his kingdom with even greater honor than before. Nebuchadnezzar praised, glorified, and honored the King of kings. It’s astonishing what a radical trip to the woodshed can do for a person. Nebuchadnezzar finally admitted that God’s acts are just and true, and that He is able to humble the proud. The king of Babylon should have humbled himself, thereby avoiding such a severe correction.

The Bible tells believers to examine and judge themselves. “But if we would examine ourselves, we would not be judged by God in this way. Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world” (1 Corinthians 11:31,32 NLT). If we stubbornly continue in disobedience, the consequences will be severe. Because God loves us, He will discipline us in order to turn our heart back to Him.

The Bottom Line: Humble yourself and obey, or you just might find yourself eating grass behind the woodshed.

Pastor Jimmy Tucker

(620) 223-1483

Diamond Community Church

2591 Jayhawk Road

Fort Scott, KS

Worship 10:45 a.m.

Recently I spent three days in Charlotte, North Carolina, with my friend, Robin, who makes me laugh like no one else I know. No matter if we were walking, shopping, eating (too much) or just hanging out, our conversation almost always turned to Jesus. (And yes, many times Jesus and laughter existed on the same timeline.)

Robin constantly seems to be in the middle of a predicament in which God blesses her unexpectedly. Sunday was no exception. Her husband told us about an after-church street fair that “stretched for several blocks.” We both love craft shows where booths line the curbs and you can find anything from yard ornaments to fresh tomatoes to crazy-fun jewelry.

Since Robin is as directionally-challenged as I am, I set my phone GPS on the location, and off we went. About six blocks from her house, Robin put on the brakes. “We aren’t going to get on a FREEWAY, are we?” Yes, we were. Her jolting U-turn, accompanied by “I CAN’T DRIVE ON THE FREEWAY!” let me know that I would need to look for an alternate route.

When we finally did arrive, I noticed the perfect parking spot and told Robin, “We won’t get closer than this.” Her answer shouldn’t have surprised me. “I CAN’T PARALLEL PARK!”

“You’re not serious!” I said. “What can you do?” Her answer cracked us both up. “Well, I’ve gotten us this far, haven’t I?” Mind you, this is the same person who drove herself into downtown Charlotte a few weeks ago to listen to a band. When the concert ended and she tried to exit the indoor parking facility, the bar (that prevents cars from leaving until the driver pays) would not go up. Thirty minutes after she had alerted everyone but the F.B.I., a parking attendant was sent to fix the problem. Apparently, Robin was sitting at the entrance where you get your ticket and not the exit where you pay. Need I say more?

Anyway, after finding an easier parking spot, we walked around a bend and up a hill, dodging dozens of bikes and strollers as we did. The first booth was occupied by an elderly man with a cassette player, singing “New York, New York” off-key while reading the words from his I-phone. Not exactly the excitement we anticipated.

Six small tents later—two selling snow cones and the other four handing out health information—the booths ended. I stopped a man walking our direction and asked if there were more up the hill and around the bend. He said the booths were scattered for a few miles and questioned what we were looking for. “Crafts and jewelry and things like that.”

“This is a bikeathon and a walkathon,” he responded. “There aren’t any crafts here. Just booths with water and some things for kids to do like chalk painting and bubble blowing.” I turned to Robin and said, “Yes indeedy, you’ve gotten us this far, haven’t you?”

All the way home, driving, of course, on back streets, we laughed, a blessing that exceeded any craft expectations. It wasn’t the only time that day that being in the wrong place was the right thing to do, as we found out later that evening. Robin and I exited a downtown Charlotte restaurant and walked towards our parking garage, my friend insisting that we turn left a block before I thought we should. Soon we passed a homeless man crouched against a building, trying to light a cigarette while clutching a box of cereal. A few steps past him, Robin said, “I can’t go on.” I said that was smart because we were on the wrong street. “No,” she answered. “Did you see how skinny that man was?” (I had not; my priority was to find the garage.) We turned around, gave the man money and hugs, and Robin told him that God loved him. He answered that he wasn’t “a religious person,” but he “sure” was grateful.

“See?” Robin said. “We weren’t on the wrong street after all. God wanted us here to meet that poor man.” She was right. I mean, maybe my sweet friend can’t drive on a freeway or parallel park or find a craft fair, but she recognizes God’s presence when I miss it. I think we all know which is more important.

In last week’s article I shared that the people in the Florida subdivision where Dave and I are living aren’t very friendly. That’s not all bad. Most of the time Dave isn’t at the ballpark we are together, finding new ways in which our differences complement each other. That’s a good thing.

Actually, it’s how God designed the spousal relationship, as described in the book of Genesis. Adam and Eve’s partnership balanced independence and interdependence as they worked in tandem in the Garden of Eden. Only when the enemy enticed Eve, telling her that she could be like God, that it all went to pot. Our Creator’s best is that we are a team…which brings me back to Dave and me having fun together.

One way is crossword puzzles. I start them, get as far as I can and then hand them over to Dave because he knows a lot about categories in which I am inept: geography, history, sports, old movies and vehicles, all of which, in my opinion, require way more crossword knowledge than I care to know. As for the blanks remaining after Hubby corrects my mistakes and fills in his answers, we turn to Google.

We now have progressed from 1,000 to 2,000-piece jigsaw puzzles. Dave thought it challenging to buy ones in which nine-tenths of the pieces are the same color, and since I rely on color and Hubby relies on shape, for every 100 pieces he finds, I find two, and yes, I admit, in my frustration I have squeezed some into places in which they don’t belong. Dave does not think that brings us closer together… but it does give us something to talk about.

My husband has introduced me to TBN, the network with old movies and no commercials. We watch two or three a week. I have tried to introduce him to the fact that there are better actors than John Wayne, but sometimes we just have to “agree to disagree.” Because of me, Dave now watches America’s Got Talent, and then we discuss who should win. When there is confusion, like last night when we watched a “Transformer” movie and I couldn’t tell the good guys from the bad, Dave explains what’s going on. (Seriously, you’ve seen one robot, you’ve seen them all.)

I have learned to help Dave chart (using codes) the daily activities for the pitchers he is rehabilitating. He is patient with my questions: “What is PTP?” “What is “PFP?” “What is TF?” “What is FG?” “What is sock?”

Answers, respectively, in case you are interested: pitcher’s throwing practice; pitcher’s fielding practice; touch and feel; flat ground; sock.

I press for more information. “What does S.O.C.K. stand for?”

“Sock.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“The pitcher throws a sock.”

“A sock? Like a sock you wear? Well, if that isn’t the silliest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Patty, I just need you to code, not comment.”
“Okay, but I still think it’s silly.”

When Dave is at the ballpark, I am writing my book or an article. For most (ahem!) of the things I write about him, I ask his opinion. This past week, he deleted an entire article when I tried to give him credit for saving a pitcher’s career. Daily we discuss our family, that we need to give up potato chips, how President Trump should stop Tweeting, our frustration with politics and prayer requests.

Interesting, isn’t it? All that time I spent wondering why it was so hard to make friends here in Jupiter, and the best one I ever could have was sitting right beside me!

The Bottom Line by Jimmy Tucker

When I was in high school I decided it would be cool to fill a huge glass jar with pennies; I eventually filled it full. I also started saving change out of my pocket and dropping it into another container. When I took these coins to the bank, it made a substantial deposit. There may have been some collectible coins in those jars, but I wasn’t interested enough to examine all of them in the hope of finding one that was valuable. However, a real coin collector would have looked diligently. Although I’m not interested in coins, I am interested in something more valuable — the “pearl of great value.” Matthew 13:45-46 NLT: “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it!” 

The “pearl of great value” is the message of the gospel of salvation. When an interested person hears the gospel and realizes its great value, he immediately takes God up on His offer. God offers eternal life to those who believe in His only begotten Son and follow His teaching. Christ Jesus teaches us to repent of our sins and turn to God. There’s two sides to a coin, and in the message of the gospel there’s two commands in one. Jesus said, “You will perish, too, unless you repent of your sins and turn to God” (Luke 13:3 NLT). There’s no turning to God without repentance. You can’t have one without the other because they’re like the two sides of a coin.

Repenting of sins is not a politically-correct sermon topic these days. A pastor is constantly under pressure to not offend people. But we have a mandate to preach the gospel message which includes repentance. People don’t like to hear that they need to repent of their sins and turn to God. Believers who practice sin may be socially acceptable, but God says they will not inherit God’s Kingdom. “Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people — none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God” (1 Corinthians 6:9,10 NLT).

Repentance is turning away from sin and living for God with all your heart. “For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. These are what defile you” (Matthew 15:19,20 NLT). Those who think they can repeat the “sinner’s prayer” and be ready for heaven, but continue to live for themselves and enjoy the pleasures of sin, are deceived.

Jesus came as God’s remedy for sin and to make forgiveness possible to all who believe in Him. Those who believe in and know Him will follow His teaching. The fallen sinful nature is to be replaced with His divine love nature. “The purpose of my instruction is that all believers would be filled with love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and genuine faith” (1 Timothy 1:5 NLT).  Are you interested in eternal life? Then consider your two choices: eternal life in heaven or eternal death in hell. Don’t procrastinate in making your decision, because if you wait too long you’re choosing hell by default.

The Bottom Line: What would you do with a valuable coin? Store it in a jar until you die, or cash it in for what it’s worth?

Pastor Jimmy Tucker

(620) 223-1483

Diamond Community Church

2591 Jayhawk Road

Fort Scott, KS

Worship 10:45 a.m.

 Jesus is not happy with the Pharisees. He calls them whitewashed tombs, beautiful (“righteous”) on the outside but “full of hypocrisy and wickedness” on the inside. (Matthew 23:27-28 NIV)

When Dave and I first toured the Florida subdivision where we now rent, I envisioned Aunt Bea taking cookies to a neighbor and Opie fishing in a nearby pond. Aside from the Key West-style homes and the pristine landscaping, what impressed me most were the front porches—welcoming, friendly, a return to a once-upon-a-time era when neighbors sat together and caught up on each other’s lives. Rocking chairs, swings, and padded loveseats all seemed to say, “Come on up and chat a while.”

As it turned out, these didn’t.

For six months I have ridden my bike or taken long walks a few times a week, all hours of the day, expecting to find owners relaxing on their porches or strolling through their All-American, Norman Rockwell neighborhood. Two times (2!) I have found porch-sitters…both who ignored me until I greeted them first. When I meet up with dog-walkers, they speak only if I mention their cute canine. No one has asked my name or started a conversation. What am I to make of this? I mean, such a waste of these charming, inviting porches!

Dave says I’m to make nothing of it. It’s their home and they can use whatever part of it they want. No one has to talk to me if they don’t want to. The way they choose to live their lives is their business. I tell Dave that they probably are all sad people who never learned how to make friends, don’t know Jesus, and I probably should take them cookies. That’s what Aunt Bea would do. Then I reconsider. I know these types. They’ll accuse me of lacing them with arsenic or marijuana. Dave says I am making way too big of a deal out of this.

I tell him that I think our neighborhood is an excellent example of “what you see is not what you get.” It appears inviting, but isn’t. Jesus gave us a great picture of that when he addressed the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. (See Scripture above.) Remember, the Pharisees were the spiritual leaders, esteemed, pious Jews who knew “The Law” and insisted that everyone live accordingly. They looked the part and played the part and probably even had “Honk if you obey God” humper stickers on their camels, but their outer appearance defied what was going on inside them. Had Aunt Bea been alive during Jesus’ day, I’m convinced that she would not have been part of the Pharisees’ social registry.

Earlier in Matthew 23 Jesus calls it like it is: Everything they (the Pharisees) do is done for people to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long. (Side note: phylacteries were small cases containing Scripture that these religious leaders attached to their foreheads; tassels were a grouping of loose threads hanging at the hems of their clothes–reminders of the commandments God gave to Moses). To the Pharisees, wide and long meant bigger and better.

Let’s face it. Appearances can deceive. We can paint it, enlarge it, decorate it, even suspend a “Welcome” banner from it, all which reveal nothing about what’s inside. But isn’t that true of all of us? Could Jesus call me a “white-washed tomb” for expecting others to meet my front porch expectations but not working harder to meet theirs? Could I be that hypocrite? Could Dave be right after all? Could this be a problem that a few chocolate chip cookies could solve?

I think it is. I’m just not sure how long I have to sit on my front porch, waiting for someone to deliver them. But when they do, I’ll invite them to “come on up and chat a while.” After all, you have to start somewhere.

I think Aunt Bea would be proud.

Expecting to have no internet service, I am writing this a few days ahead of Hurricane Dorian’s projected arrival near where Dave and I are living in Florida. Yesterday I went to Costco to buy water…as did, it seems, a few thousand other people. Signs in the parking lot gave the bad news: “Out of Water.” So was Walmart. So were all of the grocery stores. Apparently, most people took this warning more seriously than I and shopped early. Today when I ran errands, I was amazed at how the lines at the gas stations circled the block, even though there was no regular gas to be had.

We are learning a lot about being prepared. As you can see from this picture, we installed the hurricane shutters necessary to stop flying debris. We were instructed to back our car into the garage door so the door doesn’t shake, thereby letting in wind and water which can lift the roof off the house. WHAT? We expect to lose electricity, but I must admit I’m not very creative when it comes to making meals without the use of a refrigerator, stove, microwave or toaster. Dave and I will fine-dine on Tostitos, bean dip and tuna fish.

I told Dave we should have rented on a top floor of a high rise, but yesterday the Weather Channel told those residents to evacuate because wet beach sand gets carried into stair wells and elevator shafts and makes it impossible to leave. Guess I’ll be happy to be where I am…three miles from the ocean in a two-story condominium where I can go upstairs if the bottom floor floods…unless, of course, that little roof-lift thing happens.

Good friends have called and texted, offering prayers and warning us to evacuate. Advice from them has included putting our important papers in waterproof containers, filling our bathtub with water and our washing machine with ice. We need to keep our devices charged (grateful for car phone chargers, when we lose electricity).

All of this involves preparation, and as I watch people scurrying around as the clock ticks away, there is an urgency like I have never seen. Living in the Midwest our concern is tornadoes, but we are not given a few days (more like minutes) to get ready. Let’s face it. Tornadoes or hurricanes, when we realize our lives are at stake, we get serious with our planning.

As we should. Still, there is a more critical call for us to be ready. 1 Thes. 4:16-18: For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Talk about an evacuation! A day is coming when no amount of scurrying can help and our eternal destiny will be set, depending on how we have prepared by knowing Jesus and glorifying God. In that split second when Jesus returns, I wonder how many will wish they would have taken his message more seriously when they had a chance.

Maybe this should be a warning for all of us.

The Bottom Line by Jimmy Tucker

Growing up in Arkansas, my brothers and sisters and I always enjoyed going to see my grandparents in Missouri. During our visit, we liked to watch television shows like “Lassie“ and “Bonanza“ because we didn‘t have a TV at home. Back then, there was no such thing as cable or dish and there were only a few stations to choose from. My grandparents had a big antenna on the outside of the house and it had to be pointed just so-so in order to have a clear picture. Sometimes the television screen would get fuzzy and adjustments had to be made on the set, or by turning the antenna slightly toward the station. Storms, clouds, and wind could affect the reception even though the TV station was still transmitting the signal.

There’s no doubt about it, the storms and winds of this world are blowing strong. God is always transmitting (through His written Word or the voice of the Holy Spirit), but we may not be receiving if our priorities are not in proper alignment with God. If we have allowed the storms of life or other distractions to move our antenna around, we can’t receive what God is wanting us to learn.

You can get yourself sidetracked and in a real jam by just “doing your own thing.” God is a good God all the time, but He’s not pleased when we only give Him our attention on Sunday morning. “So be careful not to break the covenant the Lord your God has made with you. Do not make idols of any shape or form, for the Lord your God has forbidden this. The Lord your God is a devouring fire; He is a jealous God” (Deuteronomy 4:23,24 NLT). This Old Testament scripture still applies to us today. An idol can be anything we put above God. It’s anything we give our attention to more than the Lord. It could be a person, a possession, or an activity. God deserves first place every day.

Like Daniel in the Old Testament, you have to purpose in your heart that you’ll not let the devil get a foothold in your life. Daniel was determined that he would not defile himself by eating the king’s food or drinking his wine, so he asked to be exempt from the royal diet. He refused to allow anything to compromise his fellowship with God. “But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself…” (Daniel 1:8 KJV).

We need to review our priorities daily to ensure that God has first place in our life. God never changes — He’s is the same, yesterday, today and forever. So if something has come between you and your relationship with Him, the problem is with you. If you haven’t heard from God in awhile, you need a spiritual checkup. He’s waiting for you to adjust your attitude and your way of living. Jesus said, “…And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20 NLT). He longs to have a genuine relationship and close fellowship with you. His awesome holiness and perfect justice requires our whole-hearted attention and prompt obedience.

The Bottom Line: If you love God supremely, keep your spiritual antenna turned to receive His smallest whisper.

Pastor Jimmy Tucker

620-223-1483

Diamond Community Church

10:45 a.m. Worship