I’ve started this IDOK three times now. In the sweet hours before dawn, I remember being awake for a few moments and a Scripture thought was there and you all were there and I thought surely that will be a good WORD for IDOK in the morning. And now that it is morning — it’s gone. Somewhere in the recesses of my gray matter I am sure it is still there but I have lost the access key for bringing it up again. You know how it is … You know it’s there but you just can’t reach it. Can be maddening; if we let it. But we don’t; we move on and some sweet day just maybe the access key will appear but until then — my heart shall go on singing. Isn’t that what Father wants for us? Especially in disappointment, to go on singing? Lets pray for one another that we can do that today! (Stuart Hamblen) (Until the day God calls me home) My heart can sing when I pause to remember A heartache here is but a stepping stone Along a path that’s winding always upward This troubled world is not my final home.
But until then my heart will go on singing Until then with joy I’ll carry on Until the day my eyes behold my Saviour Until the day God calls me home.
— Instrumental —
The things of earth will dim and lose their value If we recall they’re borrowed for a while And things of earth that cause this heart to tremble Remember there will only bring a smile.
But until then my heart will go on singing Until then with joy I’ll carry on Until the day my eyes behold my Saviour Until the day God calls me home…
Psalm 126 A Song of Ascents. 1 When the LORD brought back the captivity of Zion, We were like those who dream. 2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter, And our tongue with singing. Then they said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.” 3 The LORD has done great things for us, And we are glad. YES. Our Lord has done great things for us! And we are glad.
Father, we are thinking of Dylan this morning; that precious little baby boy with ears that hurt and we ask You to heal him, take away the excess fluid and infection, whatever the source of his pain and make him well; comfort his family and help them to go on singing today. Father, help all of us to go on singing today whatever maladies we are facing, physical or emotional – help us sing to You of Your Great Love for us and that You do all things well and for our good. This is such a busy time of year, parties to plan, food to prepare, houses to prep, kids to retrieve and love on, doctor appointments, Sunday School lessons to prepare, Moms and Dads to look after, gifts to buy and wrap, — please don’t let us loose YOU in all this. We will if You don’t help us. Lord Jesus we need to be more like You. You are never in a hurry and still never late – I seem to be both most all the time. Forgive me and correct me I pray. And there are probably a bunch of IDOKs who feel the same. Help us change. There are many folks to comfort this morning, these are just a few.The Peace of Israel Dylan. John K. Kyle A. Jason, Vicki, Sharron and other family members. Joseph Toomey and Family. Wheeler Family. Mary Ann. Mr. Nash. DeLois. Terri. Leah O. Patsy B. Kim T. Krystee. Rachel B. Kevin and the children. Lisa’s Mother. Janie B. W.C. & Family . Vickie. Lisa W. John Thomas. Cole. Taylor & family. Anita. J Lloyd and family. Janet and Steve. Cathy. Toy and family. Katelyn. Caleb and family. Bay and family. Jennifer B. John and Carolyn. Larry and Claudia and family. Jeanette and Earl and family. Libby and family. Callie. Madie. Ruth. Martha F and Bob. Rev and Mrs. Carpenter. Allyson and Glen and family and Kaitlyn. Brittney and Kersten and family. Sharron and girls. Frankie and girls. Sheila and Andy. Carrie and Rachel and Jacob and family. Billy and Gina and boys. Lance and family. Grace and family. Tressa and Brad and family. Cindy K and family. Chuck. Jessie L. Windy and Jared and families. Helen and Dan and family. Jen and Larry and family. Chad and Brittany and family. Mollie and family. Jenny. Julia and her Mom. Bobbie and family. Tj. Zack. Phillip. Jessica. Larry. Kayla. Trey. Jacob. Ashely. Lance. Candance. Laura and family. John and Sandy. Bill and Judy. Adam & Family. Every IDOK and every IDOK son and daughter and grandchild. Every IDOK Pastor and Family. Every IDOK church. Revival in America. IDOKs Military Families. IDOKs Troops – Ethan. Christopher. Raul. Robert. Billy. Josh. George. Buddy. Mark. Josh W. James. Bryan. Nick. Hawk. Brant W. Lyndon A. Christopher R. Travis N. Joshua M. IDOK Troops leaving shortly for foreign soil: Justin G. Albert R III. Serving Stateside: Jonathan. Jasmine B. Tommy T. Shaun. Bay. Danny. Tim. Lee. Injured and brought State side: Anthony. Hector Injured Stateside: Edward J. Hospitalized outside USA: Corpl. Light Military at home adjusting – Mack. The 226. Troy. Drew. Brad. Tommy. Desi. Civilian in Country – Mike. Lee. And especially our IDOK Troops we pray for their protection today in mind and body and spirit and we pray for the safe return of each and every one of them and we ask for a successful conclusion to this war and for Peace for Israel and for Repentance for America and for Your Choice to be elected President of this Land. Thank You for loving us, Amen and amen. As I post this it is 64°F and clear in Al Asad, Iraq & the time there is 4:37 PM AST – on December 7, 2007
Have you ever purchased a bunch of grapes, opened them at home to wash them and when you pour them out of the bag you discover the stems are dry and most of the grapes have fallen off the branches? Those left on the branches are so sparse you have no choice but to pluck them off too. And then what do you have? A bowl of individual grapes — NOT a pretty sight! Like so Christians are not meant to abide alone – we need each other (all living godly lives) to make an attractive presentation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the ‘world’ and we need to be fresh, moist and nutritious, not dry and shriveled and certainly NOT falling off the branch. And for the purpose of this IDOK lets say the ‘branch’ is a local church body. Hebrews 10: 25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. Did you gather last night for prayer with other believers? And speaking of prayer, we have some reports and continued requests. Uncle John’s surgery went well. They did an epidural so they wouldn’t have to “put him to sleep” which made it easier on his breathing. They were able to successfully fix the aneurysm and when I left the hospital this afternoon, they were planning to send him back to his room straight from recovery. Originally, they said that he would be in ICU for a couple of days. I haven’t heard from Jann T with an update on Kyle, but will let you know when I do. Prayer Works! Tulefel, Thank you so much for alerting all my IDOK prayer buddies. It is only by the matchless grace of God that Jason is not dead or blinded. He is still in the hospital and will have surgery for skin grafts to his chest and arm on Friday. Please pray for him. They told him that the surgery will be the worst pain he will experience so far. I cannot imagine any worse pain than he has already had. Pray that God will intervene and deliver him from the horrible pain. They are also going to evaluate whether he will need skin grafts on his face. He may need eye lid reconstruction. Please pray that God will intervene and that it will not be necessary. Also, pray for my daughter, Vikki. She is devastated over this accident and is really seeking God through all of this. I have prayed for her relationship with God to deepen for a long time. Pray that her heart will stay open to God and His will. Pray for her to be strong and to trust the Lord in all things. Thank you to all of my IDOK prayer partners for your faithfulness to pray. Prayer does change things. There is no greater force in all the world than a group of praying people. From the bottom of my heart, I love all of you and am so thankful that I can come seeking help and you are faithful to give it. God bless each and everyone of you. Love, Sharron And Claudia asks that we pray for Dylan – a precious grand-baby with an ear infection and an allergic reaction to medication. Father, thank You for messages in grapes. And thank You for IDOK that You allow us this connection but Lord we recognize that we all need local places of worship where we gather together – help us do that faithfully. And Father, thank You for this excellent report with John K and we trust You with the rest for him. And Dylan. Father, heal this precious little one and comfort Mom and Dad and GMom and PapaT too. Thank You for progress with Jason and as Sharron has asked Lord have mercy and intervene with the natural order of healing and skin grafting and give Jason supernatural pain relief as these procedures are done and in the healing process. And to our way of thinking this would be a great testimony to both he and Vikki and we do pray for a great testimony to be given to them of Your Amazing and Awesome love and mercy. Thank You Father. And we are still trusting Kyle to You and praying for his healing. And not only for these, but for these too:The Peace of Israel John K. Kyle A. Jason, Vicki, Sharron and other family members. Joseph Toomey and Family. Wheeler Family. Mary Ann. Mr. Nash. DeLois. Terri. Leah O. Patsy B. Kim T. Krystee. Rachel B. Kevin and the children. Lisa’s Mother. Janie B. W.C. & Family . Vickie. Lisa W. John Thomas. Cole. Taylor & family. Anita. J Lloyd and family. Janet and Steve. Cathy. Toy and family. Katelyn. Caleb and family. Bay and family. Jennifer B. John and Carolyn. Larry and Claudia and family. Jeanette and Earl and family. Libby and family. Callie. Madie. Ruth. Martha F and Bob. Rev and Mrs. Carpenter. Allyson and Glen and family and Kaitlyn. Brittney and Kersten and family. Sharron and girls. Frankie and girls. Sheila and Andy. Carrie and Rachel and Jacob and family. Billy and Gina and boys. Lance and family. Grace and family. Tressa and Brad and family. Cindy K and family. Chuck. Jessie L. Windy and Jared and families. Helen and Dan and family. Jen and Larry and family. Chad and Brittany and family. Mollie and family. Jenny. Julia. Bobbie. Tj. Zack. Phillip. Jessica. Larry. Kayla. Trey. Jacob. Ashely. Lance. Candance. Laura and family. John and Sandy. Bill and Judy. Adam & Family. Every IDOK and every IDOK son and daughter and grandchild. Every IDOK Pastor and Family. Every IDOK church. Revival in America. IDOKs Military Families. IDOKs Troops – Ethan. Christopher. Raul. Robert. Billy. Josh. George. Buddy. Mark. Josh W. James. Bryan. Nick. Hawk. Brant W. Lyndon A. Christopher R. Travis N. Joshua M. IDOK Troops leaving shortly for foreign soil: Justin G. Albert R III. Serving Stateside: Jonathan. Jasmine B. Tommy T. Shaun. Bay. Danny. Tim. Lee. Injured and brought State side: Anthony. Hector Injured Stateside: Edward J. Hospitalized outside USA: Corpl. Light Military at home adjusting – Mack. The 226. Troy. Drew. Brad. Tommy. Desi. Civilian in Country – Mike. Lee. And for others on our hearts and illnesses and pains and maladies not mentioned here – we all have something Lord about which we are concerned and we ask for Your Individual Attention. And we pray for our IDOK Troops, for their protection today of mind and body and spirit; for their safe return home, for a successful conclusion to this war; for the Peace of Israel and the Repentance of America and the election of Your Choice as President of this Nation and the Revival of Your Church. Revive us Lord for Your Own Name Sake. Amen and Amen.
As I post this it is 67°F and over cast in Al Asad, Iraq & the time there is 4:29 PM AST – on December 6, 2007
A word from Max Lucado from his book The Great House of God: We avoid pain and seek peace. God uses pain to bring peace.
6 His branches shall spread; His beauty shall be like an olive tree, And his fragrance like Lebanon. Lebanon is a wooded mountain range on the northern border of Israel and my thoughts are wooded with olive trees. Olive trees are a staple, the giver of life sustaining gifts to Israel. And to that we can add that Lebanon in the Hebrew language means to be white, to be made white, purity, to show whiteness, grow white. Beautiful description of Jesus, isn’t it? And of us – as we ‘grow’, like Him, ‘become white’, ‘pure’ in Him. Oh! Yes! Lord Jesus spread Your Branches over me!!! 7 Those who dwell under his shadow shall return; They shall be revived like grain, You know the story of grain, don’t you? That it must fall to the ground and die in order to live and bring forth fruit. What better picture could we have of what we must do today if we are to ‘grow white’. And grow like a vine. Their scent shall be like the wine of Lebanon. 8 “ Ephraim shall say, ‘What have I to do anymore with idols?’ I have heard and observed him. I am like a green cypress tree; Your fruit is found in Me.” What a STATEMENT! Now that I have HEARD His Voice, now that I have OBSERVED His Ways, how could I anymore bow to idols???!! How indeed!! 9 Who is wise? Let him understand these things. Who is prudent? Let him know them. Oh yes! We are ONLY wise and ONLY prudent when we ‘grow white’, when we nestle under the Shadow and Wing of the ALMIGHTY and LIVE THERE. For the ways of the LORD are right; The righteous walk in them, But transgressors stumble in them. See that?! His Ways ARE RIGHT, always. And we do well only when we walk and live and breathe in them. Amen. Make it so in us Lord!
Prayer Requests: Kathie, I just talked to Johnny and he said that Uncle John will have surgery tomorrow morning for the aneurism in his aorta. Uncle John will be 91 on Christmas Day and he has asbestosis so this is risky. The aneurism is very large and the doctor’s say that if it ruptures it will be instant death. There has been some debate as to whether he can even make it through the surgery but Uncle John has made the decision himself. He’s in God’s hands. Please pray for Kyle A. He is very sick with Staph infection and is in the hospital in Tuscaloosa for the 2nd time since Friday. Kyle is a great Christian guy and the only son of Kim and Tim A who go to church with Andrew. Joann T from Eastern Shore Baptist called me to get the prayer chain started. Joann’s son, David, is Kyle’s roommate at Alabama. Please pray. Janet Father, thank You that we are nestled under the Shadow and Wing of Your Salvation. Thank You for Your Word; otherwise how would we endure all that we see and hear. You have in Your Heart what You will do for John. Thank You for the years You have given him, good years. Father, I hardly know how to pray for him but I am asking that the surgery be successful and that he live. And Kyle, so young and the only son, Lord. We understand staph infections to be bad, life threatening. We know You know and we know You care. You said the prayer of faith would heal the sick and so we are praying for a remarkable recovery for Kyle. And we ask for a remarkable recovery for Jason too and faith to come alive in Vicki, stronger and deeper than she has ever experienced. And these too Lord and all those concerns and pains, both physical and emotional, that we are bearing. Lord, we all want to be healed. We want and as I say that I remember – Lord, cause our pains to bring us to Peace – Your Peace within. Bless these as only You can. Bring our IDOK Troops home safe and sound and today give them protection of mind, body and spirit. And bring this war to a successful conclusion we pray and we pray for the Peace of Israel and we pray for the Repentance of America and we pray for the election of Your Chosen President for this Country and we ask this for the Glory and in the Name of Jesus our Savior. Amen and Amen. The Peace of Israel John K. Kyle A. Jason, Vicki, Sharron and other family members. Joseph Toomey and Family. Wheeler Family. Mary Ann. Mr. Nash. DeLois. Terri. Leah O. Patsy B. Kim T. Krystee. Rachel B. Kevin and the children. Lisa’s Mother. Janie B. W.C. & Family . Vickie. Lisa W. John Thomas. Cole. Taylor & family. Anita. J Lloyd and family. Janet and Steve. Cathy. Toy and family. Katelyn. Caleb and family. Bay and family. Jennifer B. John and Carolyn. Larry and Claudia and family. Jeanette and Earl and family. Libby and family. Callie. Madie. Ruth. Martha F and Bob. Rev and Mrs. Carpenter. Allyson and Glen and family and Kaitlyn. Brittney and Kersten and family. Sharron and girls. Frankie and girls. Sheila and Andy. Carrie and Rachel and Jacob and family. Billy and Gina and boys. Lance and family. Grace and family. Tressa and Brad and family. Cindy K and family. Chuck. Jessie L. Windy and Jared and families. Helen and Dan and family. Jen and Larry and family. Chad and Brittany and family. Mollie and family. Jenny. Julia and her mom. Bobbie. Tj. Zack. Phillip. Jessica. Larry. Kayla. Trey. Jacob. Ashely. Lance. Candance. Laura and family. John and Sandy. Bill and Judy. Adam & Family. Every IDOK and every IDOK son and daughter and grandchild. Every IDOK Pastor and Family. Every IDOK church. Revival in America. IDOKs Military Families. IDOKs Troops – Ethan. Christopher. Raul. Robert. Billy. Josh. George. Buddy. Mark. Josh W. James. Bryan. Nick. Hawk. Brant W. Lyndon A. Christopher R. Travis N. Joshua M. IDOK Troops leaving shortly for foreign soil: Justin G. Albert R III. Serving Stateside: Jonathan. Jasmine B. Tommy T. Shaun. Bay. Danny. Tim. Lee. Injured and brought State side: Anthony. Hector Injured Stateside: Edward J. Hospitalized outside USA: Corpl. Light Military at home adjusting – Mack. The 226. Troy. Drew. Brad. Tommy. Desi. Civilian in Country – Mike. Lee.
As I post this it is 70°F and cloudy in Baghdad, Iraq & the time there is 4:38 PM AST – on December 5, 2007
We are glad you are here; stay a while, look around, and be encouraged. We estimate there to be over 3,000 posts here at The White Stone Blog. Please know my hope is ALWAYS to help and NEVER harm. I have voiced many opinions and thoughts here since 2007 and by now I MAY NOT EVEN AGREE with all of them and some of my grammar and punctuation likely needs editing. But this is changeless: JESUS is our ONLY Savior and Hope. Do you KNOW Him?
