ON BIRTH AND DEATH AND BLESSINGS !

While I was in seminary I had a professor, Dr. Wayne Oates -- who coined the word Workaholic and was an astute pastoral counselor -- who told us, "There will be days when you will go from the bedside of a new born baby to the bedside of someone dying."

This afternoon I rode on the elevator with an excited 2 year old boy who was going to see his newly born baby sister for the first time. I went to his mother Carmen's room. She was the mother of newly born Gracie. We said a prayer of thanksgiving and gave a prayer that the little one would grow up in the admonition of the Lord. It was only after I left Carmen's room that I remembered that 3-4 years ago Carmen was the one who told our daughter about Crosspoint Community Church. Melinda was having a difficult time finding the right church and went to Crosspoint and while she was there she met Mike and became, not a Phillips, but a McReynolds. Isn't it amazing how we touch others lives. What a blessing and a time of thanksgiving.

Tonight I got a call that my friend Howard had died. He was only 57 years old. He had been in and out of the hospital for a couple of months. The prognosis had not been good, but his spirits were always high. He studied faithfully The Purpose Driven Life during his last months. He was an excellent leader and lots of people really loved him and his wife. This morning as I prayed with the family I prayed for courage and strength and a sense of God's presence.

Yes, a day of birth, and dying, and blessings. Blessings for the little one Gracie and special blessings for being a part of Howard's life and his family during this time.