Be careful

Hey SuperGirl,

I thought of you this morning (actually I think about you all the time). I was reading in Matthew 7 and one verse stood out in my mind:
⁶"Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces."

This verse can have a number of applications, but only one meaning. The meaning is that we must guard the valuable things in life, being careful how we put them out to the world around us. We must always be honest, genuine and authentic; however, who we trust with the the most valuable things of our lives must be guarded somewhat.

When I think of you, and the most valuable things of your life, I think about your heart and emotions, your dreams and goals, and your commitments.

So, I guess I just want to tell you to be careful about who you share the deep and secret things of your heart with, and about who you let in on your dreams. Also, go slow in making commitments, being sure that those you connect with are worthy in character of your trust and allegiance.

I know this sounds pretty negative, but I don't want to see you hurt. Your dad is pretty sharp about knowing people - who to trust and invest in - so talk to him about this stuff. He won't steer you wrong.

The Secret

Hey beautiful lady,

I miss you today more than usual. I don't really know why, but I do.

As I was reading this morning in Ezekiel I found a secret. I know, if it's in the Bible it's probably not a secret, so I will call it "The Golden Key." It is found in chapter 36 --

²⁷ And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.

What is the big secret, the Golden Key? It is God's Spirit, the Holy Spirit. God told Ezekiel that there was coming a day when He would put His Spirit into the hearts and minds (the souls) of people, and that would be the key to them following God.

As a believer in Jesus, the Bible tells us that we are in Him and He is in us - that we are joined together and that the Holy Spirit lives within us. His (the Spirit) desire is to influence us and lead us in our lives of pleasing and following God. That's the good news.

The more a person pays attention to the voice of the Spirit and listens for it, the more the Spirit's influence makes a difference in their life. It becomes easier and easier to follow God.

When someone begins to ignore the Spirit it is like they become deaf to His voice. It becomes easier and easier to do things that displease the heart of God and that are not good for their life.

I tell you all this so that I can ask you to do me a favor: as you grow up and live life, pay close attention to God's voice. As you do that He will lead you in a life that you will not regret.

Listen and Do

Alexa,

I was reading in the book of Ezekiel this morning during my daily Bible reading time; it was mostly kind of boring, however, in the middle of what I was reading I found something very important and wanted to share it with you.

In chapter 33, towards the end, it says this:

³¹ My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to listen to your words, but they do not put them into practice. With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain. ³² Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.

This reminded me of what it says in the New Testament in the book of James, chapter 1:

²²Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. ²⁵But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.

I just wanted to tell you that throughout your life, God will be putting some very special people around you, people who He will use to teach you and guide you in your love and relationship with Him. You are a sharp girl, and you will know who they are. I want to ask you to do two things.

First of all, listen to them. Don't tune them out but take the time to really listen and think about what they are saying. God will help you to know what they are talking about and to understand what they mean.

But don't stop there. Allow what they are saying to change the way you think and to change the way you live. Put into practice the things they are trying to teach you. If you do this your life will be solid and the struggles and problems that do come your way will not be able to destroy you.

If you don't believe me (and I know you do!), then read the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:24-27. He also is talking about listening AND doing.

You're b-e-a-utiful, and I love you muchly!!!

Papa

Coming to visit

Hey Beautiful Girl,

Nani and I are coming to see you tomorrow ... and we each have a gift for you. I hope you like them. They are for Valentine's Day, mostly because you are the cutest Valentine in the world.

We like to give you gifts, because gifts are meant to tell someone how important they are and how much they are loved.

God gives us gifts all the time. One of my favorite gifts is beauty. When I look out at the world around me and see all the beauty and beautiful things, it makes me feel alive. I think beauty is a direct reflection of the glory of God. The world is full of all kinds of beauty, made up of different shapes and sizes, colors and textures. It is like beauty is such a big thing that it takes all these different ways to express it.

I think God's glory is that way. God's glory is so much that it will take all of eternity to be revealed. That is what we have to look forward to when we leave this life and enter into the realm of Heaven. Heaven will be an ever-increasing adventure of experiencing God's glory.

God loves us and has given us the gift of beauty to show us a glimpse of Heaven. Always trust and hope in Jesus and his love for you, and then we can experience Heaven together.

I love you very much.

Papa

Skype

Alexa J.......

We have been having problems with our computer lately when we have been trying to talk to you using Skype. We can see you, but our video is not working so you can't see us.

But I guess if one was going to be working, I am glad that it is yours. We don't really change much, (unless I get a haircut), but you change every time I see you. You get bigger and prettier and smarter.

I love you so much and you make me so happy when I hear you call my name and Nani's name when you hear our voices. You are precious.

I got to thinking about how God sees us at all times, even though we don't really see him (with our eyes). This is kinda like us seeing you, but you not being able to see us. I think it thrills God's heart when we call his name even when we can't really see him.

Make sure to always call on Jesus, because he is always watching you.

The good things around us

Alexa,

Yesterday you left St. Louis to head home with your mom and dad (and Nani, too). We had a great week together. You are such a beautiful girl, and you turn heads wherever you go. I love you so much.

One of the things we did was to go to Grant's Farm. It is a wildlife preserve right here in the middle of St. Louis. We saw all kinds of animals, including deer, elephants, zebras, birds, and goats. In fact, you got to feed and pet the goats. You were so brave.

I have been thinking about the fact that Nani and I have lived here in St. Louis almost two years and we had not yet gone out to Grant's Farm. All those animals and all that fun is within 15 minutes from our home and we had not seen it.

That has me wondering how many other good things are right around me that I haven't noticed or that I have not taken the time to experience. I have made a promise to myself: I am going to live the rest of my life with my eyes wide open and looking for all the goodness that is around me.

I am sure that I will find it in the places and in the people that I see everyday. I want you to do the same thing.

I love you.

Pawpaw (that is what you have been calling me lately)

God loves the world ... through us

Hey Beautiful Girl,

One week from today you are coming to see Nannie and me in St. Louis, and we are very excited. You will get to meet Champ in person -- our new dog. As you have seen through Skype, he is TEN TIMES bigger than Bella! You are going to love him; he loves to be petted and to cuddle.

You will also see how many people here in St. Louis stop to talk to us because of Champ. They ask questions about him, or they make a comment about how crazy it is to see such a big dog and a little dog walking together. We then get to become their friends, and that gives God a chance to love them through us.

I tell you all this to say that God has a way of using every part of our lives, and so many different things. And He wants to use your life to show his love to the world. It doesn't matter if you are little bitty like Bella, or big and scary looking like Champ, God can and will use you if you let him.

You might be wondering why God would use Bella, and Champ, and me, and Nannie, and you, to love the world.....why so many different ways? I think it is because He loves the world SO MUCH that he finds every way he can to express that love.

And we get to do it with him.

See you next week.

Pops