When I'm Gone by Joey Rory

A bright sunrise will contradict the heavy fault that weighs you down In spite of all the funeral songs The birds will make their joyful sounds You wonder why the earth still moves You wonder how youll carry on But youll be okay on that first day when Im gone Dusk will come with fireflies and whippoorwill and crickets call And every star will take its place And silvery gown and purple shawl Youll lie down in our big bed Dread the dark and dread the dawn But youll be alright on that first night when Im gone You will reach for me in vain Youll be whispering my name As if sorrow were your friend And this world so in the end But life will call with daffodil And morning glorious blue skies oull think of me some memory And softly smile to your surprise And even though you love me still You will know where you belong Just give it time well both be fine When Im gone

The End of The Crossing

 On October 6, 2024, our congregation met for the last time. Our pastor and family are retiring to the mountains of N. Carolina, and the rest of us will find a new home, a new family. 

It was heartrenching. 

We began with a time of worship in song with these: He Has Paid the Highest Price, Thank You Jesus for the Blood Applied, No One Like Our God, (a song written from Hannah's prayer in Daniel, by our Worship leader), What a Beautiful Name, and Goodness of God. Notice that, as was the rule, none of these songs have 'me' or 'i' in them. the focus was always about Him.

Women of the Late 20th Century

 just thinking about how labels have changed in my lifetime. when I was a girl I was Miss Shirley Johnson, my mother was Mrs. Merril Johnson and my dad was Mr. Merril Johnson. then I became MS Shirley Johnson, my mom became Mrs. Lucile Johnson and my dad Mr. Merril Johnson. now I am (if I hadn't changed my name) Shirley Johnson, my mom is Lucile Johnson, and my dad Merril. nobody gets a title. i forgot to mention the Master for young boys.

anyway, what's the point? I am not sure, but seems to me that the one that changed most is the women. they're just never satisfied in this generation. now that they've stripped themselves of all identification, where do they go from here? they've also gone from wearing dresses, universally, to almost all in pants. is the point to be more like men? or is it to display their charms more dramatically?

they also have publicly stripped themselves of clothing, not to mention wearing what they do wear tighter, whereas I've not seen that dramatic change in the males. what it seems to come down to, in my generation, is that women just can't seem to get enough exposure and change.

demanding little snits trying to steal the show. whatever. just thinking.

My First Pair of Jeans

Today looks and feels (atmosphere-wise) like the days i spent in Minnesota in September on the lakes with my dad and mom. a tad warmer (70) but still reminds me. i was 10, 1957 or so.

we drove up and we got all the way into Minnesota before my mom finally talked my dad into stopping and buying me my very first pair of jeans. i heard her say under her breath, "you can't expect her to go out on a boat in a dress in weather like this, Merril Johnson." (mom seldom, extremely seldom, talked back to my dad.) Next small town we came to he pulled into a parking place and i got a new pair of jeans. i'm not sure i was ever allowed to wear them again after we left the state.

Hope for Tomorrow

I've referenced Hebrews 11: 1 a couple of times this week, and my mind stayed on it a bit each time. It's almost 40 years ago, but i can still remember what my mind set and attitude was like before i accepted Christ. I thought about my kids, and then about me. My kids would leave home some day, and I was mortal. So, i had pretty much no hope for this life except to "get as much as I could for as long as I could". Still, I came up empty. Hebrews 11: 1 answers that, and when I had Christ, I learned that without that faith, without Him, I had no hope. That faith is the firm foundation upon which this life is worth living. Without it, life stinks. With Him, I have hope for tomorrow.

AND THE JOY WE SHARE AS WE TARRY THERE, NONE OTHER HAS EVER KNOWN. It's not a laughing fest. It's not a jump up and down exercise. It's not walking around with this huge smile painted all over your face. It's sitting quietly and peacefully, feeling a warm sense of being loved and held tightly and safely, completely calm while your whole world around you is caving in.

ENOUGH

One of my favorite singers is a woman who I believe is THE voice of the twentieth century, Linda Ronstadt. Ten years or so ago she was diagnosed with super nuclear palsy, a form of Parkinson's disease. She lost her voice, her career, and very quickly her motor skills.

Every now and then when I feel a little sorry for myself, I will listen to her music and then read for the hundredth time all her struggles to live as normal a life as possible. I always realize how fortunate I am to have what health I have left.

It's very important to remember that there are thousands, millions of people out there that are worse off, hurt more, in a much sorrier state than you are. I'm in God's hands, and that is enough!