Murray Lincoln Transfers Posts to New Blogspot

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~ Pastor Murray Lincoln ~

I Believe...

I Know...
A Birth Certificate shows that we were born
A Death Certificate shows that we died
Pictures show that we lived!
Have a seat . . . Relax . . . And read this slowly.

I Believe...
That just because two people argue,
it doesn't mean they don't love each other.
And just because they don't argue,
it doesn't mean they do love each other.

I Believe...
That we don't have to change friends if
we understand that friends change.

I Believe...
That no matter how good a friend is,
they're going to hurt you every once in a while
and you must forgive them for that.

I Believe...
That true friendship continues to grow,
even over the longest distance.
Same goes for true love.

I Believe...
That you can do something in an instant
that will give you heartache for life.

I Believe...
That it's taking me a long time
to become the person I want to be.

I Believe...
That you should always leave
loved ones with loving words.
It may be the last time you see them.

I Believe...
That you can keep going long
after you think you can't.

I Believe...
That we are responsible for what
we do, no matter how we feel.

I Believe...
That either you control your
attitude or it controls you.

I Believe...
That heroes are the people who
do what has to be done when
it needs to be done,
regardless of the consequences

I Believe...
That money is a lousy way
of keeping score.

I Believe...
That my best friend and I can
do anything or nothing
and have the best time.

I Believe...
That sometimes the people you
expect to kick you when you're down,
will be the ones to help you get back up.

I Believe...
That sometimes when I'm angry
I have the right to be angry,
but that doesn't give me
the right to be cruel.

I Believe...
That maturity has more to do with
what types of experiences you've had
and what you've learned from them
and less to do with how many
birthdays you've celebrated.

I Believe...
That it isn't always enough,
to be forgiven by others.
Sometimes, you have to learn
to forgive yourself.

I Believe...
That no matter how bad your
heart is broken the world
doesn't stop for your grief.

I Believe...
That our background
and circumstances may have
influenced who we are,
but, we are responsible for
who we become.

I Believe...
That you shouldn't be so eager
to find out a secret.
It could change your life Forever.

I Believe...
Two people can look at the exact same
thing and see something totally different.

I Believe...
That your life can be changed in
a matter of hours by people
who don't even know you.

I Believe...
That even when you think you
have no more to give, when
a friend cries out to you -
you will find the strength to help.

I Believe...
That credentials on the wall do not
make you a decent human being.

I Believe...
That the people you care about most
in life are taken from you too soon.

I Believe...
That you should send this to all of the
people that you believe in, I just did.

I Believe...
"The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Thanks Wilma S... very timely
Author Unknown - from an email...

~ Pastor Murray Lincoln ~

Age is only a number

"Age is only a number, a cipher for the records. A man can't retire his experience. He must use it. Experience achieves more with less energy and time." ~ Bernard Mannes Baruch ~

I love this quote as I exit my full time ministry at our church. The semi retirement mode is upon me. The long weeks and many hours at times – are now fading and a whole new world is appearing. The new world has people actually asking about my experience and finding value in what the past was in my life.

At the time I was living through the ‘experience’ – I often shuddered and wished that I wasn’t there. Now I am happy that I went through it…and even more happy that I am through it and not back there living it.

I am also delighted for the good experiences too. They are almost as many as the not so good ones. But the good ones left less scars…and torn parts…which are now my medals of honour.

I read the following of Bernard Mannes Baruch….
Born: 1870 ADDied: 1965 AD, at 94 years of age.
1970 - Born 19th of August in Camden, South Carolina.
1897 - He married Annie Griffin.
1889 - Baruch attended in City College of New York.
1923 - Finished LLD in Williams College.
1918-1919 - Served as U.S. War Industries Board.
1918-1919 - Chairman of U.S. War Industries Board.
1941-1945 - Worked for the U.S. Office of War Information.
1946-1947 - He served as UN Official UN Atomic Energy Commission.
1965 - Bernard Mannes Baruch died on 20th of June.

He was only 94 when he died…lived and worked through two world wars and then saw all of the other small wars the world has witnessed.

Reading some things of the man’s life has left me wondering where I fit as well. My experience is rich. I need to pass it on and on and on….

Blogging does that for me. Out of the daily routine I find wonder. Out of the pain and problems come deeper experiences than I ever have had through the years of pleasure before. I wish now that I would have blogged my entire life….

Pondering the wonder of “Experience” and savoring the memories today.

How about you? Have you ever done a “Stock Taking of All Experiences”?

Today as I prepare for my last Sermon at Northview – the flood of experiences are coming back by the millions…where will I start and where ever will I finish? Few people will ever have the wonder of the opportunity that I am being presented with…. WOW!

Age is only a number…. Hmmmm?

~ Pastor Murray Lincoln ~

Famous Quotes from Baruch, Bernard Mannes

• "During my eighty-seven years I have witnessed a whole succession of technological revolutions. But none of them has done away with the need for character in the individual or the ability to think."
• "I was eleven, then I was sixteen. Though no honors came my way, those were the lovely years."
• "Millions saw the apple fall, but Newton was the one who asked why."
• "If you have made a mistake, cut your losses as quickly as possible."

When The Answer Comes - WOW!

For the past few days I have been looking for a huge answer…from an extremely small and far away place. The place I am looking for the answer from is over 23,682 miles away.

At our church in August we are connecting with a Beth Moore Seminar entitled “Living Proof Live 2008”. Beth Moore is an excellent speaker and very popular with her ability to communicate truth. She holds her audience’s attention with her wit and wisdom.

Beth will be in our church by a unique connection via Satellite – The Galaxy 25 Satellite that is situated the 23,682 miles up in the sky way over Houston, Texas direction some where. From our area that means it is 217.3 degrees West at an elevation of 35.6 degrees and a rotation of 18.1 degrees. The Satellite is not large – perhaps something the size of a family’s van – and is hanging there in space doing a continual orbit along with the speed of our earth’s rotation.

For the non technical people, a signal is sent up to the Satellite from an earth station, then the Satellite catches it and then redirects it back to earth and any receiver that is ready to receive it. The signal is very straight proceeding down to earth to the waiting and tuned Satellite Dish. By ‘tuned’ I mean directed or aimed perfectly at the Satellite above.

The connection from up above to down below is not easy. It requires some special adjusting and also some special equipment carefully designed and aimed.

How hard can it be?

Well come back to earth and walk out on a football field. Stand at one end with a long stick that is able to reach along ways out across the field – say 100 yards or 300 feet – to the other end. Imagine that you grab your end of stick lifting it up and then get ready to lift the other end of the stick up carefully and steadily until it clears the ground. In this case imagine the stick will not bend and the far end rises at the same speed that the hand held end does.

Your goal is to move the other end of the stick and place it 10 yards – 30 feet to the right of where it is and inside a small space of 6 inches square in the exact center. The stick cannot touch the ground outside the square and if at all possible it MUST BE in the exact center!

Tuning a Satellite Dish is a wee bit harder than that. The place that you need to hit is 23,682 miles away and only as big a family van. Actually the emitting signal point is smaller than that. One tiny move on the ground under your hands can be 5,000 miles left or right, top or bottom of the Satellite hanging so far in space.

Here is how you do it…
First – open the box of the packed Satellite Dish which is in about 100 pieces. Follow the instructions and tighten all the nuts and bolts.

Second – Make sure the mast of the Dish is exactly at a 90 degree angle from the ground. After it is assembled connect the wires to the receiver and then the receiver to the Television.

Third – Turn it all on and watch the screen for possible signal reception. But just before all that comes the code and the correct numbers that tell the receiver which Satellite you are looking for (I forgot to mention that there are hundreds of Satellites hanging above our earth sending signals down – everywhere!).

Fourth – Begin moving the Dish a little this way and then that way…suddenly there is an indication that you are close… and then BINGO – you hit it! It is like that special moment when the fish bites on your line. You have it and success is yours.

It wasn’t quite that easy. Remember I said that it took some days to do this. The first equipment that we had was not good enough. The equipment was not getting the signal – or rather got it but couldn’t understand what it had received.

With the change of a small amount of the right pieces of what was needed – we had success.

How much is this like life….?

I have been asking for an answer for a long, long time – from a long ways away. It seems like my prayer just never gets there. Yet it has and signal has come back to me…but my equipment isn’t tuned – or maybe even all wrong…my personal equipment that is…the stuff inside of me… hmmmm?

In another sense it is a whole lot like life. We face problems that are massive. We need help. Then we try every thing we can do to find an answer in all the wrong places…aiming at some thing that is there but we are 1000s of miles off course.

God isn’t 23,682 miles away…but it can seem like it at times. In fact maybe it feels that he is so far away that we will never hear from him.

In the days prior to connecting to the signal I found that I was in the right area but because the equipment was all wrong and even too old – the signal couldn’t be interpreted by the receiver.

Often there are pieces of my personal life that are not right. There is sin that blocks the signal. There are parts that need to be made new…or changed all together…for me that includes the habits that get in the way of the clear signal arriving to the heart of my life.

When I have made the changes and then tuned in…WOW! The signal comes loud and clear.

Perhaps today you feel like someone that has lost the signal. Or maybe you once had the signal and now it is off line.

God wants to talk to you clearly. His signal is coming to you all the time. He only needs for you to tune in your Spiritual Dish… and then make sure that the equipment is up to date and clean. He is sending right now…are you receiving?

When the answer comes…WOW!

~ Pastor Murray Lincoln ~

The Little Nest

On top of the hill, near the property line is lone tree. When we walked by the tree the other day there was a gentle breeze blowing. In one of the branches there was a small nest with a little bird sitting in it.

Within an hour there was a violent storm that pelted our area. It nearly tore the umbrella from my hands as I ran to the vehicle. It pounded hard against the windows on the way home….

Today it is sunshine… and there is sparkling grass with the last evidence of the hard rain.

The nest is still there and so is she.

Man oh man what love that must be. No matter what the storms are like – that little creature is committed to the best for her little ones.

I can only imagine what was going through her mind. These eggs matter and nothing will get me off of them – not even this wind and water.

The amazing thing too is the ability that the small bird had to weave the nest so well around that branch. Who taught her to do that?

The Bible states clearly
Luke 12:6-7 (New International Version)
6 Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies[a]? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. 7 Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Today is a new day….
~ Pastor Murray Lincoln ~

Happy Father's Day - "3 Years"

3 Years - Happy Father's Day
by Jessika Van Spronsen

Yesterday marked a huge day here in the Van Spronsen house. Yesterday, the 14th of June is exactly 3 years since our Jonah has been home!! What an amazing 3 years it has been!

When he was born, they didn't know if he would live through the night, and he did, then they told us he would be home in 3 weeks, but he wasn't. It was touch and go for so long! Wow! 3 years!! Where has the time gone?

Jonah has never been hospitalized in 3 years for an illness, which is very rare for all kids who have di-george AND a tracheotomy! He has learned how to do something they said he never would--walk. He has learned to speak, another feat they said he would never do. Albeit it is with his hands, but--he did it! He is getting so much wiser as the days go by. He now has a special machine called a 'Tango' that he uses to communicate with. Once on, this machine works as fast as Jonah's mind does, and allows him to communicate up to thousands of phrases and words, he can even speak like SpongeBob Squarepants if he wants to!

What has 3 years meant to all of you? To us, it has meant family togetherness, overcoming MANY obstacles, and living to tell the tale. A huge commitment of love, dedication and trust in the Almighty that everything was going as planned. Some days there are glitches, but most days there are many humourous stories to tell about. God is good, and He sure knew what He was doing when He gave us this special little bundle to take home.

I can remember the day like it was yesterday, bathing him in the morning, dressing him in 'going home clothes' which consisted of a long sleeve button up collard shirt that was blue, a pair of beige pants, a pair of beige socks, and beige SHOES!! The first time ever he had worn shoes!! And a matching knitted sweater vest! Man was he sharp looking!

I gathered up the remained of his blankets and toys, and held my son before gently placing him into the nurses arms to say goodbye. We stood there for about an hour crying on the fifth floor, taking in the fact that HE WAS ACTUALLY GOING HOME!!! Then it was down to the 3rd floor where it had all started, we were so excited!! We cried there as well.

Then we left the hospital, all 3 of us, our little family. Jonah's first time ever going outside. The air was beautiful, it was 19 degrees, and he was taking in everything.

We headed home for a HUGE surprise for Nana. We headed straight through to Lindsay, where we were supposed to go for dinner that night. We had kept it a secret that Jonah was coming home to Nana.

When she opened the door, there he was, and she gathered him in her arms, and has yet to let him go.

She thought we had finally had enough and signed him out of the hospital Against Medical Advice (AMA). Haha!!

Oh what a day. That night, I tucked my son into HIS OWN CRIB, IN HIS OWN ROOM, WITH HIS OWN BLANKETS, IN OUR HOUSE!!! What a memory that will always be!! The rest is history, but not only has each day of the last 3 enriched our lives, it has given us such a cool perspective on what life really is all about!! It isn't about the possessions you have, or the money you have, it's about the richness you have in family. It's about cherishing each day you have your family home with you, healthy, laughing and playing. I think that is pretty cool!!

Jessika, George, Jonah and Samsun!!xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox