YOUR FRIENDS' ACTIVITY

    Blog Posts by Dr. Gary Nelson

    • Promise

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Healthy Living – Wed, Mar 31, 2010 9:41 PM EDT


      "...promise..."

      IMG_3463 by you.

      "My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life." (Psalms 119:50)

      While we were suffering through a pretty oppressive winter, God's promise of fresh, new life was already at work. This little leaf was patiently waiting for the right combination of light and warmth to gently unfold itself and display the hope of a beautiful spring. Even as the snow was still falling and we were shivering and shoveling, God's promise of relief was present and waiting for God's moment to signal relief.

      Suffering by its very nature is always difficult. Whether the suffering comes through physical or psychological distress, economic hardship, or relational crisis, the pain is always difficult, and even dangerous. Suffering can lead to despair, and despair can lead to the loss of life. One of the things that makes suffering bearableRead More »

    • Not Alone

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Healthy Living – Wed, Mar 24, 2010 3:06 AM EDT

      "...not alone..."
       IMG_3118 by you.

      "The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me." (John 16:32)

       The sign outside the hardware store read, "Chicks, ducks, and bunnies are in!" so I rolled into the parking lot and went inside with my camera. There I found two bins, one for ducks and one for chicks, with a little girl next to one holding and squeezing one of the chicks. The mother was giving the appropriate, "Now be careful," warnings, but I knew it was a real trial for the poor chick. (At least the chicks weren't dyed pastel colors like the ones I remember in the stores at Easter when I was a child.) This little duck in the picture with his head nestled against his sister's neck seems to be finding some sort of comfort in the midst of it's trials. He's not alone!

      If truth be told, there is probably little else we fear more than being totally, utterly alone, especially in times of

      Read More »

    • Watch

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Healthy Living – Wed, Mar 17, 2010 5:21 AM EDT

      "...watch..."









      IMG_2948 by you.

      "O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch." (Psalm 5:3)

      I heard the cry go up, "There's a crocus blooming in the yard," and once more I was reminded that it has been a really tough winter. We've been watching for the first signs of relief. I laughed when I saw the tiny fly perched on the petal and thought it looked almost as though she, too, had been waiting and watching for the crocus to open and trumpet the good news. Our hope is on the way!

      In this "click-a-button," "instant-gratification" sort of culture, it's difficult for us to "plead our case" and "watch," as the Psalmist says. Let's face it, most of us are far more accustomed to hitting the button and picking up the candy bar after it hits the bottom of the vending Read More »

    • Transformed

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Healthy Living – Wed, Mar 10, 2010 4:05 AM EST

      "...Be Transformed..."

      IMG_2797 by you.

      "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." Romans 12:2

      Ah... Spring is near... the daffodils alongside the road across from the church are starting to break through the beer cans and leaves. It won't be long now before God transforms the ugliness of the leftovers of a hard winter with a spectacular display of color and new growth. God has the ability to renew the bleakest of situations, the darkest of days, even the trashiest of lives.

      We crave renewal, but then what? The Apostle Paul suggests that something is supposed to happen after renewal... transformation. The fresh, renewing power of God's Spirit is supposed to set us on a new path, a path that celebrates the gift of renewal with healthy living.

      Most of us learned at an early age not to litter our Read More »

    • Worth

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Healthy Living – Wed, Mar 3, 2010 4:27 AM EST

      "...you are worth much..."

      DSC02027 by you.

      "As for you, even the hairs of your head have all been counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth much more than many sparrows." (Matthew 10:30-31)

      A picture may be "worth a thousand words," but I'm not so sure this picture was worth the risk the young man was taking as he dangled out the window of his car to snap the shutter. Signs all over Yellowstone warned that this big grizzly and his relatives were extra hungry and extra mean because they had just emerged from hibernation.

      Lent is a great time to stop and ask the question, "What is my life worth?" Is my life worth enough to cause me to stop unhealthy behaviors that risk mangling or ending it? Seems to me we can't tackle the question of what others' lives are worth to us until we first answer the question about our own life. Do we treat our life like we're worth Read More »

    • Hollow...

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Healthy Living – Wed, Feb 24, 2010 11:29 PM EST

      "...there is death in the pot!"









      IMG_1872 by you.

      "But while they were eating the stew, they cried out, "O man of God, there is death in the pot!" (II Kings 4:40)

      I guess this fish I found on a beach in Texas didn't get the message that there was death in the pot in which he was swimming. In a way the fish reminds me of the young woman who came to see me one day at my counseling office. She had a similar sort of "hollow" look about her as she explained that she had been an "exotic dancer." She wondered out loud how she had missed the warning that there was emotional, spiritual "death in the pot" where she was dancing. She danced and danced until she literally danced her life away. Nothing remained but the shell of a young woman filled with remorse and shame. The death in the pot in which she lived and danced Read More »

    • Renewal

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Work + Money – Wed, Feb 17, 2010 8:40 PM EST

      "...new...old..."
      Are you adding a note or a person?

      IMG_1677 by you.

      "No one tears a piece from a new garment and sews it on an old garment; otherwise the new will be torn, and the piece from the new will not match the old." (Luke 5:36)

      A wrong turn in Cleveland set up this picture for my camera. The old Orthodox church looks like it's growing from the roof of the new housing complex. The picture reminds me of the struggle we often face with the "old and the new" in our lives. Sometimes we get stuck, and the "old" becomes our "idol" that might hold us back from letting go and truly allowing God to examine us and fill our hungry souls. Other times our spiritual and emotional hunger can propel us on a quest for the "latest and greatest" with such desperation that we destroy the old without an understanding of the important role it might continue to play for us. WeRead More »

    • Revelation

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Work + Money – Wed, Feb 10, 2010 6:01 AM EST

      ...he revealed his glory...

      IMG_1299 by you.

      "Jesus performed this first miracle in Cana in Galilee; there he revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him." (John 2:11)
      I love it when the camera is able to reveal something that is normally almost invisible to my eye. No matter how many times I might have watched birds landing on a tree, wire, or some other object, I don't think I've ever witnessed the particular wing movement in the picture that allowed this little fellow to fly at breakneck speed in a snowstorm and land suddenly and safely on a tiny perch. Wow !!!!

      Life can often take some interesting turns when things are revealed to us . Many times a revelation brings joy, wonder, and thankfulness, but sometimes the revelation brings pain and suffering, like the news of something physically or emotionally hurtful that we learn for the first time. Sometimes it's difficult for us to allow ourselves to experience a revelation because of our fear, stubbornness, or even apathy. I am

      Read More »

    • Hunger

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Healthy Living – Thu, Feb 4, 2010 12:59 AM EST

      Hunger...

      IMG_1000 by you.
      "Hunger has made us burn with fever until our skin is as hot as an oven." (Lamentations 5:10)

      This is the first moon of the new year, called by the Native Americans, the "Wolf Moon." They named all of the new moons of the year, and called the first new moon of January the "Wolf Moon" because in the still crisp air of the winter night the howling of the hungry wolves carried easily through the barren trees. Somehow I get the feeling that hearing hungry wolves howling not too far in the distance was not a comforting feeling. In fact, it probably was a reminder of the danger the tribal members might encounter in the woods when "hunger" in the form of a pack of powerful wolves was stalking their camp.

      Hunger is dangerous, not only when it attacks from the outside in the form of a snarling wolf, but also when it attacks from the inside in Read More »

    • Discipline

      By Dr. Gary Nelson | Work + Money – Wed, Jan 27, 2010 7:38 PM EST


      "...regard for the law..."

      IMG_0923 by you.

      "If you have no regard for the law, you are on the side of the wicked..." (Proverbs 28:4)

      Can't you just hear that lead goose honking, "Put the pedal to the metal"? Yeah, and trying to keep them off the grass? Good luck!

      As much as we sometimes hate to admit it, rules are important if we're to live in healthy, fulfilling relationships. When couples and families come for counseling, I often hear complaints like, "We're just not compatible," or "We just can't communicate," or, We're just not in love anymore." What I most often find is that they've gotten sloppy with the "rules." At some point in their relationship they began to "fudge" on the "rules." Instead of taking the time, energy, patience, and discipline to follow some fairly simple "rules," they became more impulsive. Throwing caution to the wind they mistook       Read More »

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