![]() My beautiful 85-year-old grandmother cannot get around on her own anymore and cannot do the things she once enjoyed. Because of this, she sometimes becomes bored and feels down. To combat this, I like to play uplifting, Southern Gospel music, both because it lifts her mood, and because I enjoy it. Not long ago, we were just finishing breakfast in the kitchen. Grandma was sitting at the table, sipping her coffee and I was at the sink, washing dishes. I could tell Grandma was feeling bored and useless, so I used my phone to find “At Calvary,” sung by the Collingsworth Family, on YouTube, a song I knew she would enjoy. While the song played, I placed wet plates on the table and handed Grandma a towel so she could dry them. Having her do this chore helps me finish sooner and lightens her feelings of uselessness. When the song ended, YouTube automatically loaded another video - another Collingsworth song. This continued happening until we were eventually listening to the Collingsworth Family singing at First Baptist Church Atlanta. At this point, we had finished the dishes and were sitting at the table while Grandma sipped her coffee.
0 Comments
![]() Moses and Aaron “Shamgar had an ox goad, David had a sling, Dorcas had a needle, Rahab had some string, Samson had a jawbone, Aaron had a rod, Mary had some ointment, and they all were used of God.” I learned this song as a child at a church camp in Washington, Indiana. The lyrics put me in mind of a question which God posed to Moses, in Exodus 4, when Moses queried how he would convince Pharaoh it was God Who had sent him. God responded by asking, “What is in your hand?” He was referring to Moses’ rod. Of course, we know the story of how God turned the rod into a snake and back again. We also recall that, when Moses and Aaron showed this to Pharaoh (using Aaron's rod due to Moses' speech impediment and lack of confidence), his magicians used their enchantments and did the same with their rods. However, Aaron’s serpent swallowed those of the court magicians. This is the beginning of the story of how God delivered Israel from Egypt and the stubborn Pharaoh through ten plagues. The story culminates when God uses Moses to part the waters of the Red Sea in order to bring the Israelites across safely and drown the pursuing Egyptian army. God would not have used Moses and Aaron in this way if they had not allowed God to use what was in their hands – their rods. Interestingly, Moses later referred to his rod as, “the rod of God” when Israel battled the Amalekites in Exodus chapter 17. The story of Jacob’s 11th son, Joseph, is one of the most inspiring stories I have ever read. As a Christian school teacher, I often used him as an illustration about God’s sovereignty and grace in our lives. Recently I reread the Genesis account about how his brothers sold him to the Ishmaelite caravan, who carried him to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar. I read how Joseph progressed in Potiphar’s household, was tempted by Potiphar’s wife, and was unjustly imprisoned. When I reached the part about Joseph being thrown into the Pharaoh’s dungeon, I thought about how unfair it all seemed. As I read on, however, three words stood out to me, “But the LORD…”
Fixing things has been a hobby of mine since I was a child. Whether it was a machine, such as a VCR, or a toy, like my baby brother's stuffed animals, which he quite literally loved to pieces, I was eager to repair it.
In martial arts, they teach you how to hold your body so you can fight and defend successfully, while minimizing the damage to your own body. These are called fighting stances. According to www.fighttips.com, the 4 best fighting stances are as follows:
|
AuthorKayti grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Hobe Sound Bible College in Hobe Sound, Florida, graduating 2013. She taught four years at a private Christian school on the west side of Indianapolis. She also coached a girls volleyball team for two years. She is now a full-time caregiver for her wonderful grandmother, Ruth. Archives
September 2020
Categories
All
Copyright Notice:© Kayti Jean Shaw and kaytiscreations.weebly.com/biblical-inspiration, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kayti Jean Shaw and kaytiscreations.weebly.com/biblical-inspiration with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
|