Forever Young

II Corinthians 4:16 "Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day." 

My husband and I spent Thanksgiving Day at the "Happiest Place on Earth,"  Disneyland. We aren't exactly teenagers, but sometimes, we just like to pretend. We can get away with that at Disneyland.

We become young again, and remember the good ol' days. Surrounded by the things I love, creativity, color and design, gardens and story, I---we feel inspired.

We sat at our outdoor table at a restaurant called the Plaza Inn, our turkey dinners in front of us; my husband grabbed my hand and said,

"Let's pray, I'm hungry." 

 For the first time, I bowed my head and prayed out loud amongst everyone else at Disneyland,  right off Main Street, below Sleeping Beauty's Castle and catty-corner from Tomorrowland.

God made His presence known, for He is always with us in our hearts. His streets and pathways lead to grace and joy, His Kingdom reigns forever, and our future He holds in Eternity

The highlight of our evening concluded watching the "World of Color," water and light productions over Paradise Bay in California Adventure. The shows, filled with songs from the Disney films from my youth (yes waaaaay back then) and some modern songs (Frozen) came to life with animation projected in color,  dancing waters and even fire,  for our wonderment and entertainment.

The final show ended with the song, "Forever Young," composed by Bob Dylan and probably remembered best sung by Rod Stewart.

Maybe Bob spent sometime in the Word when He wrote this...

"Forever Young"

Written by Bob Dylan

May God bless and keep you always 

May your wishes all come true

May you always do for others 

And let others do for you

Matthew 7:12 

"Therefore, however you want people to treat you, 

so treat them, for this is the Law of the Prophets.

May you build a ladder to the stars 

And climb on every rung

May you stay forever young

Proverbs 4:18

But the path of the righteous

is like the light of dawn,

That shines brighter and brighter

Until the full day.

Forever young, forever young 

May you stay forever young.

May you grow up to be righteous 

May you grow up to be true

May you always know the truth 

And see the lights surrounding you

Ephesians 5:9

For the fruit of the light consists in all

goodness and righteousness

and truth

May you always be courageous 

Stand upright and be strong

May you stay forever young

Joshua 1:9

Have I not commanded you? Be Strong

And courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed,

For the Lord God is with you

Where ever you go. 

Forever young, forever young 

May you stay forever young.

May your hands always be busy 

May your feet always be swift

May you have a strong foundation

When the winds of changes shift

I Corinthians 3:11

For no man can lay a foundation other

than the one which is laid, 

which is Jesus Christ.

May your heart always be joyful 

And may your song always be sung

May you stay forever young

Psalm 28:7

The Lord is my strength and my shield;

My heart trusts in Him,

And I am helped.

Therefore, my heart exults

And with my song,

I shall thank Him.

Forever young, forever young 

May you stay forever young.

While out and about today, out of the blue tonight, my husband mentioned the feelings he felt last night, 

"The music...made me think about Timmy, (our son  in Heaven).  It made me miss him. " 

"He is forever young Ted, I thought of him too,  it's all good."

Ted: "I hope Corey can come with us soon, we'd have so much fun."

"He doesn't exactly like hanging out with 'old' parents," I said. 

"WHO says we're old? I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength..."

So tonight, dear friends, may you be "Forever Young," living in and through the promises of the Savior King, the Prince of Peace and the Divine Creator of everything wonderful, colorful and joyful. 

Yes, serving the Lord and knowing Him even beats Disneyland! 

Lord, Tonight and I am grateful and thankful that I have a season pass to Heaven! While I am here on this earth, You help me navigate through all the different "lands" of my life, whether happy places, discouraging places, fearful places or unknown places, You Lord are my Light, my shield, and my King. Thank You Lord for my husband and partner Ted, who enjoys this life with me and that we desire to stay "young"and serve You with all our hearts. Help us Lord to do just that and keep the turnstiles of Your truth moving with ticket holders set for seeing Your Kingdom established. I pray for the sons and daughters still young, that their hope falls upon a Star, one rising in the East that points to the Promised One, the Messiah, The Giver of all things Good. Lord, in thanksgiving, I praise You.  Amen. 

A "Rewarding" Career.

Revelation 3:8  "I know your deeds. Behold, I have put before you an open door which no one can shut, because you have little power, and have kept my word, and have not denied my name." 

As an instructional aide for high school special ed., there are a variety of opportunities I get to participate in and create myself,  to better prepare our students. My job is rewarding and fun, and I have the liberty to be creative, using the talents and skills God gave me to encourage and help our students. Today, I did just that in three different ways. 

My 1st period class is Work Studies. All year, the lessons taught and the portfolio the kids put together,  prepares them for self-advocating as well as filling out applications, creating an account they can keep and update forever on a job search site, learn about different employment opportunities and the programs available to help them within the spectrum of their disabilities, what the expectations are in the job market, and of course setting goals. Today, I participated in a mock panel, calling in each student who hopefully  "prepared" himself/herself  for a job interview/final. We asked the student a set of 7 questions relating to their job interests. A critique of their performance will encourage them for the real thing, our hope and goal. We looked for things like a prepared and updated resume', eye contact, a little more elaboration on the questions and enthusiasm. 

Of the 5 kids in today's interview, I am happy to say they all took it seriously and did the best they could to impress us and get their "foot in the door." 

For me, it was fun pretending to be someone with "hiring power." 

For my 2nd period class, Psychology, a general ed class, the kids are preparing for their final. I have a student in the class who I assist, modifying his work. So, I prepared a "test" for him to take on the day of finals.  I know what he is capable of yet I also want him to use the best of his abilities to accomplish this assessment. When I see him moving ahead without a prompt, this is great progress!  

In our 3rd period Economic class, the kids have a "stock project." For 15 days, we've been following our chosen stocks, learning about buying shares and dividends, banks and investing, companies and profits, futures and paychecks. The kids all have smart phones now; in an instant they can pull up their market and check the price. 

Yes, I picked a few stocks too, and it's been fun pretending to be "wealthy, invested,  diversified..."

God doesn't have to "interview" us. He already knows our background. At the Cross, we received an "entry level" position when we first believed. God then gives us all the tools and training we need to work through this life. Blessings "raise" our trust in Him and along the way we receive many promotions. He makes it easy to make "eye-contact" for it is looking right at the purest of Love. His retirement package is heavenly, a promised eternal bonus. I'm grateful that He is my BOSS. 

While serving him, we most definitely receive a lot of tests, some we may even fail, but God never fails us! He knows what we are capable of and He accommodates us with His Holy Spirit, a prompter and encourager towards the righteousness, the right answers...wisdom. His teaching for us is individualized. We just need to show up to class and have the desire to learn. Yes, some days are better, some days it's over our heads, but God is available after school, actually 24-7. 

I may have little riches, but God invested His all for me. My return is life, abundant life everlasting. God's "shares" are priceless. He asks only that we split our stock and share Him with others. I don't plan on selling, but holding on for the long-haul. In that I can see His diversification in His many ways He makes Himself known. I am not of this world, but my account is full. 

Lord, thank you for your Open Door. In my weakness, You are made strong and I am HIRED with the Most High! Your tests encourage me, teach me, lead me to intimate prayer and fellowship, help me to see Your strength and encourage others when I can share and write about Your goodness to me. Thank you Lord for investing Your Son for my Eternal Portfolio. I will keep Your Word and will not deny Your Name, CEO of my heart. Amen.